Wharton Properties

What Wharton Properties does

Wharton Properties is a privately held commercial real estate company founded by Jeff Sutton in the early 1990s (originally as Wharton Acquisitions Corp.) and headquartered at 500 Fifth Avenue, New York. The firm owns and leases prime retail real estate, having amassed a portfolio of over 120 buildings across Manhattan's most expensive corridors — Fifth Avenue, Madison Avenue, Times Square, SoHo, 34th Street, and Fulton Street Mall — plus holdings in Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, Staten Island, Long Island, New Jersey, and Philadelphia. It is not a technology company; its core assets are physical storefronts and long-term tenant relationships.

The business model is retail property ownership and leasing. Revenue is generated primarily through long-term (typically 10–15+ year) commercial leases quoted on a per-square-foot basis, with prime Fifth Avenue space commanding $3,500–$5,500+/sq ft and record-level rents in Times Square and SoHo. Individual leases carry substantial value — Nike's $700M lease at 650 Fifth Avenue over 15 years, American Eagle's $300M lease at 1551 Broadway (~$20M/year), Dolce & Gabbana's ~$300M lease at 717 Fifth, and Bulgari's record-setting deal at the Crown Building exceeding $5,000/sq ft. Go-to-market is direct, relationship-driven landlord-tenant negotiation, with founder Jeff Sutton personally recruiting brand executives (traveling to Milan to meet Domenico Dolce, to Columbus, Ohio to pitch Abercrombie & Fitch) and often acting as his own broker.

Customers are predominantly global luxury and fashion retailers seeking flagship locations, including Giorgio Armani, Prada, Bulgari, Dolce & Gabbana, Ermenegildo Zegna, Givenchy, and Alexander McQueen, alongside athletic and mid-market brands (Nike, American Eagle, Abercrombie & Fitch, Skechers, Aeropostale) and grocery/everyday anchors (Whole Foods, Burlington Coat Factory) in emerging neighborhood developments. The company frequently executes deals through joint ventures, most notably a long-standing partnership with SL Green Realty (over $2B in retail investments together) and with General Growth Properties on the $1.78B Crown Building acquisition, with Sutton typically sourcing tenants and retaining majority stakes while partners provide capital.

Name

Wharton Properties

Legal name

Wharton Properties

Website

https://jeffsutton.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Wharton Properties is a privately held New York commercial real estate firm founded by Jeff Sutton, owning and leasing 120+ prime Manhattan retail storefronts on Fifth Avenue, Times Square, and SoHo to luxury and flagship fashion tenants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial Real Estate Leasing (Prime Retail)

NAICS

Lessors of Real Estate (5311)

SIC

Real Estate Dealers (For Their Own Account) (6532)

akta.pro primary industry

Retail Property Management (BPAJAGAB)

Keywords

• Retail property leasing
• Commercial real estate
• Luxury retail space
• Prime retail locations
• Flagship store leasing

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Infrastructure, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Retail Property Leasing: Wharton Properties generates revenue primarily through long-term commercial leases with retail tenants across its portfolio of over 120 properties. Rents are quoted on a per-square-foot basis and typically run 10–15+ year terms. Premium Fifth Avenue locations command $3,500–$5,500+ per square foot, while Times Square and SoHo locations also achieve record-level rents. Revenue is a mix of base rent, and high-value leases can be worth hundreds of millions over their term (e.g., Nike's $700M lease, Armani's $250M deal, Dolce & Gabbana's ~$300M lease).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Wharton Properties owns and leases a portfolio of over 120 commercial retail properties concentrated in Manhattan's prime corridors (Fifth Avenue, Madison Avenue, Times Square, SoHo, 34th Street) and select outer-borough/tri-state locations. The company specializes in leasing flagship and high-visibility retail space to global luxury, fashion, athletic, and lifestyle brands on long-term (10–15+ year) contracts at record-level per-square-foot rents, and custom-configures multi-floor spaces to tenant specifications.

Product overview

Wharton Properties operates as a commercial real estate company specializing in prime Manhattan retail properties. The company's core offering is its portfolio of over 120 commercial buildings across New York City and the tri-state area, with flagship holdings on Fifth Avenue (including the Crown Building at 730 Fifth Avenue), Madison Avenue, Times Square, Soho, and 34th Street. The company provides retail leasing services, connecting high-profile luxury tenants (Prada, Giorgio Armani, Dolce & Gabbana, Bulgari, Nike, American Eagle) with premium retail space. Services include property acquisition, repositioning, and management, with a focus on flagship store placements and record-breaking retail deals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Commercial Property Portfolio A portfolio of over 120 commercial real estate properties across New York City (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, Staten Island), Long Island, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Miami. Properties span prime retail locations including Fifth Avenue, Madison Avenue, Times Square, SoHo, 34th Street, and Fulton Street, leased to global luxury, fashion, athletic, and grocery tenants on long-term contracts.
• Retail Leasing Services Specialized retail leasing services for high-profile enterprise tenants, including flagship store placements for luxury brands such as Prada, Giorgio Armani, Dolce & Gabbana, Bulgari, Ermenegildo Zegna, Nike, and American Eagle Outfitters. Services include direct landlord-tenant deal sourcing, custom space configuration, and multi-year (10–15+ year) lease negotiation at record-setting per-square-foot rents.
• Crown Building (730 Fifth Avenue) Iconic Manhattan trophy property at 730 Fifth Avenue acquired for $1.78 billion, featuring ground-floor luxury retail leased to Bulgari (15-year deal at $5,000+/sq ft — NYC retail record) and Ermenegildo Zegna (9,000 sq ft flagship at ~$4,000/sq ft), plus upper-floor office and a Bulgari hotel.
• Times Square Properties (1551, 1552, 1560, 1565 Broadway) Collection of prime Times Square bow-tie retail properties featuring major tenants including American Eagle Outfitters (26,500 sq ft three-level glass-box flagship with 250-foot signage tower; $300M / 15-year lease), Express (~30,000 sq ft at $1,800+/sq ft), Swarovski (returning to the bow-tie area), and Duane Reade.
• SoHo Broadway Properties (529, 530, 560 Broadway) Collection of SoHo Broadway retail properties including the iconic 529 Broadway building (former home to Nike's 55,000 sq ft SoHo flagship, sold to Ingka Investments/IKEA for $213M in 2025), 530 Broadway (acquired for $327M), and 560 Broadway (Hugo Boss, Escada locations).
• Fifth Avenue Properties (609, 717, 720, 724, 509, 511 Fifth Avenue) Collection of Fifth Avenue retail properties featuring marquee tenants including Giorgio Armani (717 Fifth, 40,000+ sq ft / $250M flagship), Abercrombie & Fitch (720 Fifth, 13,500 sq ft / $120M+ net lease of entire 113,000 sq ft building), Prada (724 Fifth, 20,000 sq ft flagship), American Girl Place (609 Fifth, 46,000 sq ft / ~$7M/year), Nike (650 Fifth, 70,000 sq ft / $700M mega-store), and Skechers (509 Fifth, $1,000/sq ft / $60M deal).

Quantifiable outcome

• Bulgari lease set a new NYC retail record at over $5,000/sq ft; total value up to $5,500/sq ft including free rent considerations; annual rent exceeding $16M for ~3,000 sq ft.
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers24 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Richemont (Van Cleef & Arpels parent)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 3 March 2026Richemont (parent company of Van Cleef & Arpels) purchased 690 Madison Avenue from SL Green and Wharton Properties for $54.5M in March 2026. The 7,850 sq ft commercial building was fully leased to Van Cleef & Arpels under a long-term lease. Represents a tenant's parent company acquiring the property from the landlord.
• Pebb CapitalminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 February 2026Pebb Capital partnered with Wharton Properties and Lane Capital Partners in 2026 to acquire a fully leased mixed-use building in Miami's Design District for $72.5M from Design District Development Partners. Represents Wharton's expansion into South Florida real estate.
• Lane Capital PartnersminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 February 2026Lane Capital Partners co-invested with Wharton Properties and Pebb Capital in a $72.5M mixed-use acquisition in Miami's Design District (2026). Lane Capital is a real estate investment firm focused on urban infill properties.
• Ingka Investments (IKEA)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 October 2025Ingka Investments, the investment arm of Ingka Group (owner of most IKEA stores globally), acquired 529 Broadway in SoHo from Wharton Properties for $213M. IKEA plans to open a 25,000 sq ft small-format store on the first two floors, marking IKEA's second Manhattan location. The six-story building was fully occupied by Nike across all six floors prior to the sale.
• Maguire Capital GroupminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 May 2016Maguire Capital Group (led by Victor and Marvin Azrak) partnered with Jeff Sutton to acquire the leasehold at 144 Fifth Avenue in the Flatiron District for an undisclosed amount. Frye Company was in late-stage negotiations to lease ground-floor space. Sutton and Maguire together bought the leasehold and planned to re-tenant the building.
• Aurora Capital AssociatescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 September 2015Bobby Cayre's Aurora Capital has been a frequent partner with Sutton on SoHo developments. They partnered on 99-year triple net lease at 511 Fifth Avenue (~$250M lease value), on the 529 Broadway redevelopment in SoHo (six-story historically sensitive 34,000 sq ft retail project with Cayre leading development), and on 530 Broadway acquisition from Thor Equities ($327M). Aurora Capital, Thor Equities, and Adjmi family were co-investors with Sutton at 529 Broadway.
• General Growth Properties (GGP)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 December 2014General Growth Properties partnered with Jeff Sutton to acquire the Crown Building at 730 Fifth Avenue for $1.78B in 2014/2015 — a world record for price per square foot of an entire office building. GGP is a major publicly traded mall owner (now part of Brookfield). Sutton and GGP also re-signed Bulgari to a record-breaking lease at the Crown Building. GGP CEO Sandeep Mathrani called the deal a record. Sutton and GGP jointly own the Crown Building retail base, while Shvo/Doronin purchased upper floors for condo/hotel conversion.
• Stonehenge PartnersminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 September 2011Stonehenge Partners was a co-investor in the SL Green/Sutton $400M+ portfolio acquisition that included the Prada store at 724 Fifth Ave and the Armani store at 760 Madison Ave. Stonehenge planned to convert rental apartments in two of the buildings to condominiums.
• Emmitt SmithminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2010NFL legend Emmitt Smith partnered with Jeff Sutton on a 200-room Hyatt Hotel project on 125th Street and Lenox Avenue in Harlem. Sutton was building the three-story retail portion at the base of the tower. Represents a unique celebrity/athlete partnership for real estate development.
• SL Green Realty Corp.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 June 2007SL Green Realty Corp. is Wharton Properties' primary joint venture partner and the most frequent collaborator. SL Green provides the bulk of capital while Sutton sources tenants and manages the retail properties. Major joint venture deals include: 717 Fifth Avenue (Armani flagship), 650 Fifth Avenue (Nike), 724 Fifth Avenue (Prada), 1551/1552 Broadway (American Eagle/Express), 747 Madison Avenue (Givenchy/McQueen), 690 Madison Avenue (Van Cleef & Arpels), 530 Broadway acquisition ($327M), and the Crown Building ($1.78B with GGP). Sutton and SL Green have partnered since ~2002/2003 and have executed over $2B in retail investments together.

Scale indicators11 records

Direct peers

• SL Green Realty Corp. Largest office landlord in Manhattan and Wharton's primary joint venture partner since 2002/2003. Has executed over $2B in retail investments together, including Crown Building, 717 Fifth, 724 Fifth, 650 Fifth, and 1551/1552 Broadway. Same business model of owning/leasing prime NYC commercial real estate.
• Thor Equities: NYC retail-focused real estate firm led by Joseph Sitt; previously a co-investor with Wharton (529 Broadway) and counterparty on $327M sale of 530 Broadway portfolio. Similar strategy of aggregating prime SoHo and Manhattan retail frontage for high-rent leasing.
• Kushner Companies: Family-owned NYC real estate firm with significant Manhattan commercial and retail holdings, including 666 Fifth Avenue and other trophy assets. Comparable privately-held, founder-driven model focused on prime NYC real estate.
• Vornado Realty Trust: Major NYSE-listed REIT focused on Manhattan office and high-street retail, with significant holdings in Fifth Avenue, Times Square, and Penn Plaza. Directly competes with Wharton for prime retail tenants and trophy asset acquisitions in NYC.

Broad incumbents

• Empire State Realty Trust: NYSE-listed REIT owning the Empire State Building and broader NYC office/retail portfolio including Manhattan street retail. Comparable business model focused on NYC commercial real estate, though more diversified across office and multi-tenant retail.
• Paramount Group: NYSE-listed REIT with significant Manhattan office and ground-floor retail holdings, including 1633 Broadway and other trophy assets. Overlaps with Wharton in owning/managing high-end NYC commercial real estate.
• Tishman Speyer: Global real estate investor with major NYC holdings including Rockefeller Center and various Manhattan trophy assets. Comparable in trophy-asset acquisition strategy and major-tenant relationships.
• Brookfield Property Partners: Parent of General Growth Properties, Wharton's JV partner on the $1.78B Crown Building acquisition. Major global commercial real estate owner with NYC retail and office holdings, comparable at the trophy-asset acquisition level.
• Related Companies: Major NYC real estate developer and owner (Hudson Yards, Time Warner Center) with significant retail holdings. Comparable in NYC commercial real estate scale and luxury retail tenant relationships, though broader in scope including residential and mixed-use.

Regional players

• Boston Properties: NYSE-listed REIT with significant NYC office presence and select retail holdings. Comparable in trophy-asset ownership and institutional scale, though primarily focused on office rather than high-street retail.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/WhartonProp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wharton-properties-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Wharton Properties