On Madison, Hear the Cry of Luxury Retailers

From Crain's Cara S. Trager: "[W]ith sales of luxury goods hit particularly hard by the recession, nowhere is the impact being felt more acutely than on the gilded stretch of Madison Avenue running from East 57th Street to East 72nd Street. ... In a sign of the distress, vacancies last year soared to 12.4%, up from 8.6% at the end of 2007, according to data from Cushman & Wakefield Inc. The situation is aggravated by rents, which have risen steeply in recent years, pricing out all but the most upscale clothiers and opening the door to a flood of jewelry stores."

Is it any wonder top retail brokers are really nervous?