Italian luxury street rents are among the most expensive in the world

Presenting the 2024 results on the commercial real estate market, Scenari Immobiliari, an independent economic research institute, revealed the overall value of the most expensive streets in Italian cities. The historic centers of Milan, Rome, Turin, Naples, Florence, and Venice host 66 kilometers of commercial streets, 26 kilometers of high streets, and over 40 kilometers of secondary streets, resulting in a total commercial area of 1.72 million square meters. 73% of these spaces accommodate product boutiques, while the remaining 27% are service-oriented, with fashion being the predominant sector, especially in Milan. Via Montenapoleone boasts 78 stores and 227 shop windows, reaching record rents almost on par with New York's Fifth Avenue, the world's most expensive. In the heart of Lombardy's capital, retail spaces on Via Montenapoleone reach €18,500 per square meter per year, while on Via Sant'Andrea, Via Verri, and Via Spiga, they range from €6,550 to €5,350 per square meter. A different situation concerns Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, which, being owned by the Municipality, is shared among brands through auction bids.

After Milan, the cities with the most expensive luxury streets in Italy are Rome and Venice. In the center of the capital, on Via dei Condotti and in the splendid Piazza di Spagna, boutique rents can reach up to €15,500 per square meter, while in the streets of the Venetian lagoon, rents range between €7,950 and €6,500. Slightly lower are the rents of the picturesque streets of Florence, although Via dei Calzaiuoli reaches €7,500 and Via de' Tornabuoni €5,000, of Bologna, with Via Massimo D'Azeglio asking for €2,750 per square meter, of Turin and Naples, whose Via Filangeri reaches highs of €1,600. According to Scenari Immobiliari's report, the most sought-after space by luxury retailers continues to be Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, a strategic destination for the retail market that brings €70 million in rents to the Municipality of Milan every year, compared to eight million fifteen years ago. Until recently, the assignments of the street's boutiques followed automatic renewals, and it was precisely the transition to auctions that skyrocketed location costs. Here, as reported by the Milan City Council's Budget and Real Estate Assets Councillor, Emmanuel Conte, rents reach astronomical prices, up to €20,700 per square meter per year.