Max Mara family acquires Chicago luxury goods store from Latsco

Another wealthy Italian family has jumped into Chicago’s high-end retail world with an offer that attracted bids from global billionaires.

The buyer of 41 East Oak Street, in the upscale Gold Coast neighborhood of the Near North Side, is connected to the Maramotti family, which owns Max Mara, according to people familiar with the deal. This luxury clothing company is sold in stores around the world.

The 5,000-square-foot building is leased to luxury retailer Bottega Veneta. The deal sold for more than $17 million, or more than $3,400 per square foot, people familiar with the deal said. Bottega has not yet opened a store, but like other luxury brands these days, it agreed last year to move to the Oak Street site and exit its Magnificent Mile store at 800 North Michigan Avenue. did.

The acquisition by Max Mara management (CEO Luigi Maramotti) further solidifies Oak as Chicago’s dominant retail corridor. While luxury tenants have flocked to the street in recent years, Magmile has struggled with vacancies. The seller is Gold Coast retail real estate magnate Fred Latzko.

It’s also the latest example of Chicago’s most vibrant commercial complex attracting foreign buyers. Among the bidders who lost to Mr. Maramotti was the family office of the late Spanish billionaire Isak Andić, owner of clothing retailer Mango, who died in a climbing accident on Saturday, the people said. It is said that it was Yasumitsu Shigeta, a Japanese mobile phone billionaire, also placed a bid.

Keely Polczynski of JLL, who brokered the sale of Oak Street, said: “Given the credit occupancy, bespoke location, premium new construction and increasing rent structure, this is an exciting opportunity for us to attract some of the world’s most aggressive buyers. “It was a very popular offer.” In a statement.

The deal includes a $35 million deal for the popular Time Out Market food hall retail property in Fulton Market by the Garavoglia family, another Italian family with ties to international spirits giant Campari Group. It follows a series of Chicago retail and office acquisitions.

The Oak Street property trades at a cap rate of just over 5%, and given its $17 million price tag, that means Bottega’s rental will likely generate more than $900,000 in annual net operating income for the landlord. I will.

“It should have been a sub-5 (cap rate),” Latsko said, calling the price “robbery.”

A venture firm run by Mr. Latsuko and fellow real estate investor Mark Hunt purchased the property for $10 million in 2007, but they later fell out and split their joint holdings, with Mr. Latsuko taking over 41 East Oak. It seems so.

Ms. Latcuso and Ms. Hunt sold the nearby former Barneys New York store in 2011 for $117 million. The 97,000 sq ft property at Oak Street and Rush Street could be the Gold Coast’s next big retail deal. The current landowner, ASB Investments, has bought it and hopes to make $160 million in revenue from demolishing the building.

Representatives for Max Mara did not respond to requests for comment, and Maramotti could not be reached. Andic’s family’s office, Punta NA, could not be reached, and Mango did not respond to requests for comment. Mr. Shigeta’s wireless company, Hikari Tsushin, could not be reached.

Bottega’s plan to occupy the Oak Street space replaced a previous 10-year lease that Latzko had with Parisian leather goods maker Maison Goyard, which was between Goyard and the landlord. The agreement was abandoned due to a difference of opinion, leading to a lawsuit.

Latsuco Interest accused Goyard of stalling the deal by changing design and construction plans and failing to acquire the property. Goyal blamed the landlord for the delay and tried to terminate the lease, even though he had changed the interior construction plan midway through.

Goyard’s motion for summary judgment against the landowner was denied by Cook County Judge Thaddeus Wilson last month, and the case continues.

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