Luxury design house Valentino SpA faces a $ 207.1 million lawsuit after the owner of its former American store on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue accused the Italian brand of illegally breaking its rental agreement and leaving the building damaged, they report several points of sale.
Valentino closed the store on the four-story Fifth Avenue site in December amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The owner of the location at 693 Fifth Ave. says the fashion house is responsible for rent until July 2029, when the rent is set to expire, according to Reuters.
In addition to the rent, the owner is charging Valentino for damages, allegedly including holes and paint in the $ 12.9 million Terrazzo Venetian marble panels.
The lawsuit comes months after Valentino asked the courts to end the brand’s 16-year lease in space, citing impacts and regulations caused by the coronavirus pandemic, reports Fox Business.
“In the current social and economic climate, full of restrictions related to COVID-19, measures of social detachment, lack of consumer confidence and a prevailing fear of personally sponsoring ‘non-essential’ luxury retail boutiques, Valentino’s business the facilities were substantially damaged and rendered impractical, impractical and impractical “, argued the luxury brand.
The lawsuit was dismissed on January 27 by Judge Andrew Borrok, who ruled that the rent favored the owner. Valentino is appealing the decision, according to Reuters.