Commercial Real Estate & Advisory

Furniture Store Blu Dot To Open Second New York Location With Major Retail Lease

CoStar | By Andria Cheng | March 15, 2022

Furniture store Blu Dot is opening a second location at a Vornado Realty Trust property in New York in one of the city’s largest retail leases this year.

Blu Dot, based in Minneapolis, signed a 15-year lease at Vornado’s 715 Lexington Ave. on the southeast corner of 58th Street, Sarah Shannon, senior managing director of Sinvin representing Blu Dot on the deal, said in an emailed statement to CoStar News.

The lease spans 12,346 square feet of interior space over the ground, second and third floors, plus a 2,700-square-foot roof deck.

Shannon didn’t immediately respond to a CoStar News request seeking rent terms.

Only seven other retail leases signed in Manhattan so far this year topped 12,000 square feet, according to CoStar data.

The New York Post previously reported the news.

Blu Dot’s first New York location was at 79 Madison Ave. at the corner of Madison and 28th Street, according to its website. The company lists a total of 15 current and upcoming stores worldwide, including in Chicago, Miami, San Francisco, Mexico City and Sydney.

“With the success of our flagship store in the Nomad Design District, we are excited to expand Blu Dot’s presence in Manhattan,” Blu Dot co-founder and CEO John Christakos said in the statement, adding the new store sits in the “heart of the design community on the Upper East Side.”

The store is just a block south of Bloomingdale’s upscale department store and near other upscale furniture stores including Design With Reach and Crate & Barrel’s CB2 concept.

“Blu Dot selected [715 Lexington] because it offers unparalleled visibility and a modern aesthetic in a vibrant corridor,” Shannon said. “With over 120 feet of wraparound glass frontage over the second and third floors, Blu Dot will have a powerful presence in the Upper East Side. The roof deck will allow Blu Dot to showcase their outdoor furniture line and to host customers and special events.”