Yesterday’s announcement that Nordstrom is getting into the used-clothes business got me thinking again about the rapid evolution of retail and how so many of the “prohibited uses” in store leases of yesteryear are now embraced by landlords and fellow retailers, yet those uses remain off-limits because of “dirty dozen” restrictions in existing leases. Even worse, many leasing professionals (attorneys included) have failed to update their prohibited use exhibits; they are still using the same exhibits from the 1990s in new leases—in the process, further preventing evolving and new retail concepts from coming into many centers. An easy and by now well-known example is the “massage parlor” prohibition preventing the operation of a Massage Envy. “Used” or “second-hand” apparel stores have also been a dirty-dozen favorite…but now we have the venerable Nordstrom getting into that business. So it’s important to consider what’s next. Tesla is already selling cars from showrooms, but most prohibited use lists ban “car dealerships”—primarily to prevent a car lot out front, not because of the showroom—so this prohibition also needs tweaking. What’s next?
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The Star-Ledger