Korean-Style Yogurt Pays Big Bucks for Court Street

Local Korean-style yogurt chain Yofiore signed a lease for 650 square feet at 32 Court Street in Downtown Brooklyn, according to Timothy King, principal of CPEX Real Estate. The rent: “close to the asking price of $14,000 a month,” which would be $258 per square foot! We checked Massey Knakal’s Brooklyn retail corridor report from last year, which put retail rent on the commercial strip between $85 and $99 per square foot (Fulton Mall and 86th Street in Bay Ridge were the highest in Brooklyn, with rents between $175 and $265). King said he’s seeing record-breaking rents on Court Street because of its myriad of customer bases—wealthy residents from the Heights and those moving into Downtown Brooklyn, people headed to the municipal buildings, students, tourists, and people visiting other retailers, like gyms and the movie theater. The release cited “Duane Reade, which has two profitable stores on Court Street two blocks apart, and Chase, which has a number ATMs and branches on Court Street to serve its customers,” as evidence of the corridor’s success (although some might cite that as an example of chainification).

Yofiore owner Anthony Shim said the Brooklyn store is scheduled to open early September. There are six Yofiores in Queens, three will be opening in Virginia and Maryland, and the company is looking for sites in Texas and Seattle. The release said, “Yofiore features nonfat and low sugar frozen yogurt in coffee, green tea, and original flavors. Natural foods (like Cap’n Crunch??) are used for toppings.” Do you think this place will sell enough yogurt to stay open?