Despite the failure of Pierre Deux, neighbors Tiffany & Co. and Garmany are doing well, says landlord Larry Garmany. (Click to enlarge)
French provincial furniture retailer Pierre Deux has closed its Red Bank store as part of a shutdown prompted by a bankruptcy filing for the 23-store chain.
The 2,400-square-foot Broad Street store, which opened next door to Tiffany & Co. three years ago, appears fully stocked. But a bright green notice taped to the door alerts visitors that the store is under the control of a court-appointed trustee.
The notice apparently went up Wednesday, though the closing occurred more than a week ago, said building landord Larry Garmany.
“It’s a shame,” he said. “But the good thing is that they didn’t leave because of Red Bank. They left because they were doing lousy” across America.
A bright green notice on the door alerts passersby to Pierre Deux’s sudden shutdown. (Click to enlarge)
Records of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Newark show the company’s parent, Arts des Provinces de France, filed for chapter 7 liquidation of its assets on June 23.
Garmany, who owns the eponymous upscale clothing emporium next door, says he knew something was amiss when he couldn’t collect on the rent from the Secaucus-based chain. Then, about ten days ago, he said, a Pierre Deux employee came in to tell him that headquarters had told store workers to pack up and lock the place.
The departure is a setback to Garmany’s goal of creating a cluster of complementary, upmarket stores on middle Broad Street anchored by his own, 40,000-square-foot business – housed in the former Steinbach department store building – and by Tiffany, which has the main space in a building that has served as a U.S. Post Office, the longtime home to Roots department store, and to Garmany itself.
But after more than five years of trying, Garmany has been unable to fill one of the two smaller spaces flanking Tiffany. He says he’s “looking for a tenant we feel is going to stay.” Pierre Deux had the opposite end of the building.
Now, Garmany will become a creditor in a bankruptcy case, and won’t be able to market the space until he’s able to reclaim possession of it.
But Pierre Deux’s hasty adieu is not a sign of where Red Bank is heading, he said.
“It’ a shame, because Red Bank is coming back,” he said. “Tiffany – their numbers are fabulous. Our numbers are looking really good. We just had a fantastic June.”
