Achille Salvagni, the Italian designer known for crafting super-yachts that sell for as much as $50 million, has made his first major real estate move in New York City, according to the New York Post. Salvagni paid $13.5 million for 797 Madison Avenue, a five-story building that once served as Tory Burch’s flagship store and had not changed hands in nearly fifty years.
The purchase places Salvagni just steps from his own showroom at 817 Madison Avenue, where he has built a reputation designing opulent home interiors for a wealthy clientele. The New York Post reported that the transaction was brokered by Henry Barnathan and David Schechtman of Meridian Investment Sales.
The building itself, situated between East 67th and 68th Streets, offers roughly 6,800 square feet of interior space along with multiple outdoor terraces, a rare combination for a property on this stretch of Madison Avenue.
Salvagni has not disclosed what he intends to do with the space. But a source close to the deal told the New York Post the designer’s ambitions likely extend well beyond storage: “He didn’t buy it to store a few old sketches, he has something spectacular in mind.”
This is not Salvagni’s first imprint on the neighborhood. He previously served as the exclusive interior designer for the Bellemont, a residential building at 1165 Madison Avenue designed by architect Robert A.M. Stern.
The sale adds momentum to a Madison Avenue corridor that has been quietly booming north of East 57th Street. It also fits a broader pattern reshaping the city’s luxury retail landscape: rather than signing leases, marquee names and high-net-worth buyers are increasingly purchasing their storefronts outright. LVMH and the parent company of Gucci have both made similar moves on Fifth and Madison Avenues in recent months.
Barnathan, speaking to the New York Post, framed the deal as part of a larger shift in how prime retail real estate is being valued. “Multiple international users came to the table here,” he said. “Rents are telling users to look elsewhere, and the market is telling them to stop renting altogether.”
The broader numbers back up that momentum. According to the New York Post, the first half of 2026 brought 18 new store openings, gallery debuts, and restaurant leases to Madison Avenue between East 57th and East 86th Streets, pushing the corridor’s retail vacancy rate below 5%, its lowest level in nearly two decades.
