Hickey-Freeman to open its first flagship store.

At a time when it's almost de rigueur for upscale fashion designers to open flagship stores in Manhattan, the prestigious men's clothier Hickey Freeman will soon open a 4,000-square foot elegant gentlemen's boutique at 666 Fifth Avenue.

This will be the first store ever for Hickey Freeman in its 101-year history. For years the brand was sold through department stores such as Nieman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue and through high-end specialty retailers. World-renowned Robert A.M. Stem Architects has been retained as interior designer to show case Hickey-Freeman's exclusive line of sports and formal wear as well as the Bobby Jones sportswear collection.

The flagship will be positioned in the west facing lobby space fronting Fifth Avenue between Brooks Brothers at the corner of 53rd Street and the National Basketball Association on the corner of 52nd. The complex transaction involved recapturing space that was part of the building's common area, reconfiguring the lobby, relocating two ground-floor tenants, and increasing the ceiling height on the ground floor. Access and egress to and from the building will now flow through expanded side street entrances. Mark Weiss, executive managing director of Julien J. Studley, Inc., co-brokered the deal on behalf of Hickey-Freeman with Andrew Goldberg, senior managing director of Insignia/ESG.

"In order to best serve our client Hickey-Freeman, our mandate was to earmark space in an ideal location, with the right retail configuration," said Andrew Goldberg.

"Fifth Avenue was identified as the right location. But there was absolutely nothing available with over 40 feet of frontage and on only one level," added Mark Weiss. "The solution was to be innovative about creating retail frontage that did not previously exist."

"We are thrilled to have found the perfect location for our first store. Fifth Avenue is the most exclusive retail address in the world, allowing us to display the Hickey-Freeman collection before a global audience," said Paulette Garafalo, group president and chief operating officer of Hickey-Freeman.