PayPal has popped up in Tribeca with its “PayPal Shopping Showcase,” a pop-up store that’s not exactly a “store.”
The San Jose-based online payment company moved into an 8,000-square-foot ground floor space at 147 Hudson Street Oct. 3. The building, known for its open space and towering windows, was an ideal location for the online money exchange company to introduce retailers to new technology the firm hopes to introduce in 2012, said Jamie Patricio, a PayPal spokeswoman.
“The focal point is to showcase some of the tools and technologies that are going to be debuting over the next few months,” she said.
The new technology will allow customers to pay for merchandise in stores from their mobile devices, and even arrange for the shop to mail a purchase to the customer’s home with a simple click of a PayPal button. But the PayPal Shopping Showcase isn’t open to walk-in customers who might happen on the store in Tribeca.
“The space is geared entirely to retailers, making their location more of a ‘trade conference’ than a ‘storefront,’ said Zeynet Ekeman, a broker who runs The Z Realty Group, which worked with PayPal on the 147 Hudson Street deal.
Keith Radhuber of International Properties Group also worked with PayPal on the deal.
PayPal looked at locations across Manhattan, including directly underneath the Highline near West 14th Street; 57th and Fifth Avenue; Times Square; and East 33rd Street, said Ms. Ekeman.
“When they saw (147 Hudson Street), this was their favorite,” said Ms. Ekeman. “It’s a beautiful space.”
PayPal is paying $165 per square foot, said a person familiar with rent negotiations. The rent was higher than the initial asking price due to the short nature of the lease, the person said.
The PayPal Shopping Showcase will remain open until February 2012.
