The Down Under fashion chic will make its way to the North Shore of Staten Island in April.
Empire Outlets announced Monday that it will be home to New York’s first Cotton On clothing store. The Australian-based clothing company was interested in making the borough its first brick-and-mortar location because it fit with the rest of the shopping company’s vision, according to Joseph Ferrara, principal at BFC Partners which is developing the North Shore mall.
"A lot of our focus at the [shopping] center is bringing a lot of concepts that don’t exist here yet," he said.
BFC Partners also announced that its Empire Outlets will be home to a True Religion location.
"People in Staten Island are a huge fan of the brand," Ferrara said. "There’s a unique sexiness to it."
Empire Outlets is slated to open on April 17, 2019, and is currently 75 percent leased according to Ferrara. The 340,000-square-foot retail center will include H&M, Banana Republic, Brooks Brothers and Nordstrom Rack.
"We have interest in every square foot and [are] negotiating the final leases," Ferrara said.
It will also feature a 40,000-square-foot outdoor food court that will include a Shake Shack and an artisanal food hall MRKTPL.
The mall was set to open alongside the planned Staten Island Ferris wheel, the New York Wheel, however, the city and the attraction’s developer announced in October the project was scrapped due to cost issues.
Ferrara said the mall’s development was planned before the wheel was ever in the picture, and he still expects a huge crowd, from inside and outside the borough, to visit the shopping center.
"The transformation of the North Shore with what we have now is pretty compelling for people to come and visit," he said.
