Apparently, they shelled out a cool $425 million for the place. Four hundred and twenty-five MILLION. I mean, I’m sitting here eating instant ramen and they’re dropping that kinda cash on real estate. Makes you think, doesn’t it? It’s on Fifth Avenue, obvs, ’cause where else would Prada be, honestly? Fifth Ave is like, the ultimate shopping mecca, you know?
And get this – It’s part of some bigger deal, months ago they already dropped another $823 million (!!!) on 720 and 724 Fifth Ave, and one of *those* already houses a Prada store. So like, they’re just buying up the whole block practically! A bunch of other luxury brands are doing similar stuff, apparently trying to revive New York’s real estate market. Smart, I guess? If anyone can do it, it’s gonna be the folks slinging designer handbags. I mean, who needs affordable housing when you can have another Gucci store, am I right? (Okay, joking…mostly.)
Honestly, I’m not sure *why* they bought it now. Maybe their lease was up? Maybe they just felt like it? I dunno, and honestly, probably no one really cares except the real estate people and, well, maybe me, a little bit. It’s just… fascinating to see these huge companies flexing their financial muscles. You’ve gotta wonder what the markup is on a Prada handbag to be able to drop nearly half a *billion* on a building, you know?
And I can’t help but wonder… are they going to jack up the prices even *more* now that they own the building? Probably, right? Ugh. Guess I’ll be sticking to window shopping for the foreseeable future. Maybe I should start saving now for a Prada keychain. You know, baby steps.