MIAMI BEACH — Contemporary specialty retailer Atrium is looking for some Miami heat.
The company, which also has locations in Manhattan and Livingston, N.J., opened a 6,300-square-foot store last week at 1931 Collins Avenue here. Sam Ben-Avraham, who owns Atrium and the New York boutique Esthete, and is founder and president of Project trade show, said he is committed to Miami Beach. He has even purchased and moved into a house on Alton Road, one of the resort city’s most fashionable streets.
Ben-Avraham wants to create a retail and hospitality compound along both sides of Collins Avenue, between The Setai, TownHouse and The Shore Club hotels. In addition to leasing the Atrium space, he has purchased the 30,000-square-foot Graystone, which will be renovated into a boutique hotel with a restaurant, along with a third building with 20,000 square feet of retail space for about 10 shops.
“Miami has changed a lot,” Ben-Avraham said. “It used to be seasonal, but now people like me are living here full-time or visiting more often.”
Ben-Avraham took a year to find the right opportunity after finding the Lincoln Road retail district saturated and Collins Avenue’s southern strip inconsistent because of the mix of high- and low-end retail. With the W hotel and Hotel Gansevoort also set for development on Collins Avenue, Ben-Avraham was won over by the proximity of his venture to luxurious resort properties and a high-profile corner location with 160 feet of windows.
“I thought about opening a store in Los Angeles or Las Vegas, but this opportunity put all that on hold,” he said, projecting first-year sales of $5 million at the new store. “Within three years, sales should be on par with New York.” He did not provide specifics.
Ben-Avraham felt Atrium could transfer many signature men’s and women’s contemporary brands to Miami Beach, mixing them with exclusive pieces from Europe, Australia and Japan, as well as customized items. Women’s wear buyer Christine Lee also injects freshness into the market while still supplying colors, prints and whimsy that shoppers in South Florida typically like.
The “clientele is much higher-end and more international than our Northeast customer,” Lee said. “Price points are 25 to 30 percent more, and I go after European and diffusion labels.”
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She’s pleased with exclusives from Humanoid’s collection of neutral, minimal basics, such as long tunics in cotton angora blends retailing for $180 to $395; Michiko Koshino’s deconstructed fashion pieces in mixed fabrics for $295 to $395, and Elissa Coleman’s camisole and tube dresses in scarf prints with beads and fringe for $395 to $595. Saturated lines in South Florida such as Dolce & Gabbana are substituted with items like CNC Costume National’s minidress in black stretch silk georgette with a lace bodice for $595.
“I can’t believe how accessories really took off in Miami, too,” Lee said of bestsellers such as Anne Valerie Hash’s shoulder handbags in pink or gray washed leather with ruffles for $1,295 and shoes by Alexander McQueen, Casadei and Jean-Michel Cazabat. “The category makes up 35 percent of inventory.”
Ben-Avraham also has plunged into his new territory with beach-chic decor and an only-in-Miami Beach annex of sundresses, beach bags and sunglasses that has a separate street entrance. Three other departments showcase women’s, men’s, accessories and shoes. With the help of DJs and extended hours — closing at 11 p.m. on weeknights and midnight on weekends — Ben-Avraham hopes to lure club goers lining up for nearby Rok Bar and Mynt.
“The store’s going to be like a party, with all sorts of events,” he said.
As for the decor, a trendy lounge or spa effect is portrayed in river rocks, rows of palm trees and other potted tropical plants. More than 60 mannequins model all of the store’s hottest looks.
Ben-Avraham said he enjoyed picking out fun surfaces like pebbled walls in sea-foam green for the dressing room area, iridescent Bisazza tiles in a Baroque pattern that cover walls and giant wave built-ins like glittery seashells. The original terrazzo floor’s wave pattern is reminiscent of Rio’s famed patterned promenades, and the bleached-wood ceiling slats and wicker-basket shelving is an ode to the Hamptons.
“We wanted to bring Miami’s beautiful scenery inside,” he said.