Athenaeum Club tempts global retailers with prized Collins St offering

An international campaign is being launched to find a tenant for a store in Melbourne CBD's upmarket Collins Street.

The 85 Collins Street store offers 400 sqm of retail space in the Athenaeum Club’s landmark city premises. Its neighbours include retail heavyweights Prada and Hermes and is directly opposite Cartier and Christian Louboutin.

CBRE's Zelman Ainsworth will be handling the leasing, said a media release.

The CBRE Melbourne team will work with CBRE’s offices in the US, Hong Kong and Europe to present the opportunity to luxury retailers around the world.

Ainsworth said the shop’s location in the city’s sought after retail pocket was expected to underpin significant global retailer interest.

“Overwhelming interest from international retailers seeking to secure space within this block of Collins Street has spurred the club’s decision to launch an on market campaign.”

Charter Keck Cramer’s national director Steve Kingston is advising the Athenaeum Club, one of Australia’s oldest clubs and a proud resident of Collins Street since 1868.  

The opportunity has arisen because of the impending expiry of existing leases to two separate tenants - Rolex and Ashley Opal Jewellers.

“Australia has been a top performer for international retailers in the past five years, with strong sales and a buoyant Asian tourism market being two of the key attractions for luxury brands seeking flagship retail space,” Ainsworth said.

The campaign at the Athenaeum Club coincides with news that a freehold office and retail building at 10-12 Collins Street, which has been on the market since earlier in the year, has been scheduled for a boardroom auction. The auction will be handled by the CBRE's Josh Rutman, Mark Wizel and Kiran Pillai.

Rutman said the building provides a terrific opportunity to invest passively, owner occupier or convert to residential or hotel accommodation, subject to relevant approvals.