'Fashion Coming to Fifth' Avenue as Tower Facing Empire State Building is Reborn

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Aug 25, 2016, 03:05 ET

NEW YORK, Aug. 25, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- "Fashion is coming to Fifth," says Faith Hope Consolo, Chairman of The Worldwide Retail Marketing, Leasing and Sales Team at Douglas Elliman.

"We're seeing the fashion brands following their clients from 34th Street Corridor to Fifth Avenue, while they also move down from the 50s, to the 40s and now heading to the 30s. This stretch -- let's call it ESBS - Empire State Building South – is set to blossom."

A page from a 1915 catalog from Harry Angelo Company when it was headquartered 341 - 347 Fifth Avenue, today known as 345 5th.

In the 40s, G-Star Raw and Muji opened at 475 Fifth, under the offices of Women's Wear Daily, while the chic Setai Fifth Avenue, at 400 Fifth, on 36^th Street, was sold and reflagged as the first New York outpost of Hong Kong hotel group Langham Place. And moving across 34^th Street from Macy's, Zara and Uniqlo, British fast fashion star Superdry filled a hole left by Esprit.

Ms. Consolo, the "Retail Queen", is unveiling a 22,000 square-foot, three-story retail space facing the Empire State Building entrance that's been re-assembled and being brought to market for the first time in a century. The Beaux Arts tower originally known as 341 - 347 Fifth Avenue is also getting new branding – 345 5th.

When the building first went up, in 1906, the second and third floor lofts, were leased to the Fashion House of Harry Angelo Company, an importer of the latest Parisian couture designs for the refined ladies of Boston and New York.

"345 Fifth is alive with history and this transformation was inspired by some of old fashion sketches from Harry Angelo that really evoke the era when Fifth Avenue came into being," Ms. Consolo said. "This was a chance to return a classic Maynicke & Franke building to its former glory with a totally modern take."

The pair of turn-of-the-century architects, Robert Maynicke and Julius Franke, were responsible for two dozen major buildings on Fifth Avenue between 12^th Street and 345 Fifth at 34^th Street.

"In the bigger picture, this is all part of the redesign of the corridor," Ms. Consolo. The new 345 5th signals the rebirth of this fabulous stretch of Fifth Avenue."

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160825/401435

SOURCE Douglas Elliman