Microsoft To Expand Its Retail Presence With First Store In New York City
Microsoft is reportedly planning to open its first retail store in New York City just blocks away from Apple's NYC flagship cube store.
Microsoft, the biggest software company, is continuing its tradition of placing at least one retail outlet in close proximity to Apple Stores. New reports suggest Redmond-based tech giant's plans of pinning yet another retail outlet close to Apple. This time, Microsoft is thinking of choosing one of the most expensive locations in the country, in New York City.
The information was originally reported by the New York Daily News, citing anonymous sources familiar with the company's plans, and later picked up by all media publications. According to CNET, Microsoft's plans to deploy a store close to Apple's outlets is good business strategy but questions if the disruptive attraction will elevate the company's sales.
Microsoft's new retail office is likely to be on Fifth Avenue, specifically at 677 Fifth Avenue near 53rd Street. This is one of the hot spots of the city and is not more than a few blocks from Apple's flagship NYC cube store. But the new destination will come at a great cost for the software giant, which recently topped $3,500 per square foot rent for the ground floor, according to Faith Hope Consolo, a top retail broker with Douglas Elliman.
"For Microsoft to land on Fifth Avenue just a few blocks from Apple would certainly be interesting," Consolo, who was not involved in the deal, told theDaily News. "It would be very dramatic."
The retail space at Fifth Avenue that Microsoft is eyeing is an 8,700 square-foot, two-story building, which was previously occupied by luxury fashion brand Fendi.
Microsoft neither confirmed nor denied the reports of placing a new retail showroom in NYC. "We are always working to identify the best possible locations for our Microsoft retail stores to deliver the choice value and service our customers are looking for, but do not have any additional information to share at this time," a company spokesperson told CNET.
The software developing company has its presence spread across Canada, Puerto Rico and most parts of the U.S. It has almost 60 retail stores around the country with 13 listed as coming soon, according to its official website. There is no mention of the Fifth Avenue store in its list of upcoming stores.
