The historic building at 77 Yorkville Avenue in Toronto, currently housing a beautiful Isaia flagship store, was recently sold at a record-breaking price to an unnamed investor. Arlin Markowitz of CBRE and Kevin Gillen of real estate firm Gillen were the listing brokers representing the vendor ProWinko Canada, and Jordan Karp and Ryan Morein of Savills Canada represented the buyer. We were asked not to reveal the purchase price publicly for this article but sources tell us that it was the highest price per square foot in Canadian history.
The 3,217 square foot building housed Canadian fashion retailer Pink Tartan until 2020 — in late 2021 Italian men’s luxury brand Isaia leased the building for its Canadian flagship store. Prior to Pink Tartan’s decade-long occupancy of the building, antique retailer The Paisley Shop operated in the space.
The 77 Yorkville Avenue building is unique. The Yorkville Avenue side of the building was built in 1867 and was originally the house of John Daniels, a constable for the village of Yorkville in the mid 1800s. A contemporary addition at the rear with an entrance on Bellair Street provides a juxtaposition in architectural styles while also expanding the space substantially from the size of the original residence.
The upper level of the Isaia flagship spans more than 1,500 square feet and includes rooms housing the brand’s range of ready-to-wear, made-to-measure clothing, leather goods, accessories and footwear as well as a tailor shop. The lower level includes a social space resembling a bar spanning about 800 square feet called the Vesuvius Lounge with windows facing onto Bellair Street.
CBREs Arlin Markowitz said in an interview that the record-breaking price indicates confidence in retail in Toronto’s prestigious Yorkville area, which is home to numerous luxury brands. He said that more big names will be coming to Yorkville Avenue as well as Bloor Street West, which is home to luxury brand flagship stores with several more on the way later this year.
Markowitz said that he also did a deal for US-based fashion retailer John Elliott to open nearby which will “benefit the area greatly”, and said that he’s hearing rumours that another major fashion player will be opening on the street that will bring in more foot traffic to the area.
Markowitz noted that the record-breaking price per square foot for 77 Yorkville excludes buildings earmarked for redevelopment, including land assemblies for high-rise development.
What would the record price be? Considering the headline and the breathless detail on the building it would be an obvious piece of information to include.
Unfortunately the number was deemed confidential and we were asked not to include it — I can confirm it’s somewhere half-way between $1k-10K/sf for some more specific reference.