By Jonathan Stempel

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Valentino SpA mentioned on Monday it has settled litigation with the owner of its former American flagship on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue, which the Italian vogue firm deserted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a press release, Valentino mentioned its amicable settlement with the owner 693 Fifth Proprietor LLC requires the 16-year lease, for house positioned two blocks south of Trump Tower, to be terminated.

Further phrases weren’t disclosed. Attorneys for the owner didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark.

Valentino had sought in June 2020 to finish the lease 9 years early, saying the pandemic made it inconceivable to run the shop “in step with the luxurious, prestigious, high-quality popularity” of its neighborhood.

After a New York state trial choose dismissed that lawsuit, the owner sued Valentino for $207.1 million, primarily to get well unpaid hire and to restore retailer injury.

Final month, a New York state appeals court docket agreed that the pandemic didn’t excuse Valentino from its lease obligations, “even when its capability to supply a luxurious expertise was rendered tougher, as a result of the leased premises weren’t destroyed.”

The pandemic depressed gross sales for Manhattan retailers, as many workplace staff and vacationers stayed dwelling.

Common asking rents within the fourth quarter of 2021 fell 13.5% from a yr earlier, although leasing exercise rose 24.1% from the prior quarter, in line with the industrial actual property firm Jones Lang LaSalle Inc.