"It is not surprising to see a lot of luxury retailers say, ‘Do we really need to be here paying these incredibly high rents?’” said one expert.
High-end fashion stores on New York’s Fifth Avenue used to play the role of a showroom, where shoppers could browse through curated racks of clothes with a glass of champagne. However, with shopping at a near standstill and in-store sales hovering at zero, that prime real estate is becoming a drag on retailers’ balance sheets.