Williams Sonoma on the move in King of Prussia

Source, Philadelphia Business Journal, Natalie Kostelni

Williams-Sonoma Inc. has signed a lease to bring its Williams Sonoma store to the King of Prussia Town Center and will eventually close it location at the King of Prussia Mall.

The store, known for its cooking and entertaining accessories, home furnishings and unique variety of marinades and drink mixes, will occupy 6,000 square feet at a prime corner at the center’s Main Street and Market Street that is across from Wegmans and District Taco. It is scheduled to open in the winter of 2020.

The deal to land Williams Sonoma (NYSE: WSM) had been in the works for some time, said Joe Mancuso, managing director at CBRE Inc., which oversees leasing for the development. CBRE Global Investors owns the shopping center.

“We understood Williams Sonoma was contemplating a new location in King of Prussia and we felt fairly strongly our community-oriented downtown atmosphere and unique gathering place would align with the likes of a Williams Sonoma,” Mancuso said.

The San Francisco retailer has had a store at the nearby King of Prussia Mall for years. A company representative couldn’t be immediately reached for comment. In addition to Williams Sonoma, the company’s other brands include Pottery Barn, West Elm and Rejuvenation.

With the Williams Sonoma lease in place, space is becoming scarce at the 263,423-square-foot town center. There remains about 4,000 square feet available in the same building that Williams Sonoma will occupy. That location was deliberately saved until the end since it was considered one of the best and considered the face of the center’s Main Street. That 4,000 square feet could be split into two smaller spaces and what stores are being targeted weren’t being disclosed.

“I’m leaving my options open,” he said. “We’re trying to be smart about co-tenancy that works well together.”

Williams Sonoma is expected to be a draw for other tenants. Aside from that space, three other smaller, inline storefronts are available. There is one across from where Williams Sonoma will locate, another next to Pearle Vision and 1,500 square feet adjacent to Founding Farmers. Midici Neopolitan Pizza, an original tenant, has closed and will be replaced with Kooma, a sushi restaurant.

When CBRE Global Investors bought the center in early 2017, it was 87 percent occupied with a series of fine dining and fast casual restaurants and large anchors such as: Nordstrom Rack, which totals 35,000 square feet; REI, which totals 30,000 square feet; and Ulta, which occupies 10,000 square feet. The center also has a series of smaller tenants including Starbucks, Duck Donuts and District Taco. Earlier this year, four new tenants came on the scene and included Drybar, Heart & Paw, Smile Direct and Verizon.

While rents vary for different uses, the town center is getting in the vicinity of $50 a square foot.