A series of major property deals in the luxury sector

Beyond specific practical considerations (rents in the city centres of major metropolitan areas are rising steadily, and securing ownership of premises means spending less money in the long term), other factors are at play.

Today, successive crises are hampering luxury brands' long-term vision and the relative stagnation of markets is pushing brands to invest in property or buy back boutiques to better manage the transformation of premises, thus making them correspond to their brand's identity and boosting the desirability.

Property investment remains a criterion of security and prudence. Large buildings available in the most sought-after city centres are becoming rare; their value has increased over the years, and this type of purchase is considered a reliable investment. In this respect, LVMH is an interesting example, as the group has made the Samaritaine district its HQ, revitalising the image of the department stores and all the surrounding buildings to tangibly enhance the group's identity and offer a range of luxury experiences under the umbrella of the primary group (luxury shopping, five-star hotels, trendy cafés, top-of-the-range gastronomy). Less than a year ago, the group bought an 18,000 square-metre building on the Champs-Élysées in Paris. This investment complemented two other property acquisitions on the same avenue. In addition to the maxi Louis Vuitton flagship at 101 Avenue des Champs-Élysées (around 9,400 square metres) and the building at 103 (around 25,000 square metres), Bernard Arnault also acquired the building at 150 Avenue des Champs-Élysées. The Louis Vuitton flagship was reportedly purchased for €770 million.

According to CFNews Immo, Hermès bought its Parisian shop in the exclusive Rue de Sèvres in the 6th arrondissement for around €300 million very recently. The company, which has 294 shops in 45 countries around the world, saw its sales increase by 15% in the first half of 2024, with sales of 7.5 billion euros—enough to afford major investments.

A year ago, the iconic leather goods house acquired a more than 9,000-square-metre building near the Champs Elysées, on Rue d'Anjou, for around 230 million euros. The group already owns the premises of some of its shops, notably in Paris, Tokyo (Ginza), Seoul (Dosan Park), Beverly Hills, Sydney, and Geneva. The group also owns a commercial building and offices in London.

Chanel has also chosen to invest massively in property by signing the acquisition of the building at 42 Avenue Montaigne, the heart of luxury shopping in the French capital. This acquisition consolidates the brand's property portfolio, which had already invested in chic tourist destinations such as Biarritz and other capitals such as London. Today, the Wertheimer brothers' group has a property portfolio worth more than 7 billion dollars, most of which has been acquired in the last ten years.

Italy's big fashion bosses are following the wave: according to information provided by the Reuters press agency, Prada has bought the building housing one of its shops on elegant Fifth Avenue in New York for 425 million dollars.