Many of the businesses that are based in Manhattan are struggling to reinvent themselves by adding private clubs to attract a younger generation.
Now Barclay-Rex, a Manhattan-based tobacconist, is preparing to open a new shop and members-only club in the heart of the Financial District, according to LLNYC.
Founded by Vincent Nastri in 1910, Barclay-Rex will be moving soon from its temporary location at 90 Water Street to 126 Pearl Street, where the entire building is leased by the Nastri family. The company has a plan to open a tobacco and novelty shop, a clubhouse, and rental apartments.
According to Vincent Nastri III, the retail store and clubhouse will open between the middle of February and early March, and will cost around $1,500 to $1,800 a year for membership.
"I've always had lounges in each of the stores, and there will be a non-membership lounge in the store," said Nastri. "But the private members-only club will offer much more and be open much later, seven days a week."
Every member of the retail store and clubhouse will get a personal locker and a hotel-style card to gain access to the clubroom.
The new store and private club will feature a fireplace, high lacquered ceilings, rugs, and a glass-enclosed humidor, as reported by Crain's New York.
The one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments on the third and fourth floors, will be renovated for lease. But this doesn't mean an automatic membership to the club if you sign a lease with Nastri.
Barclay-Rex recently signed a 20-year lease with an asking rent of $91 per square foot for a four-story building at 126 Pearl Street, near Beaver and Hanover streets. The tobacconist will leave its temporary store at 90 Water Street, when they open the new store in the new location.
"Cigar aficionados love to sit and chat, and that's what [Mr. Nastri] will be able to achieve in this new location," Mr. Menkin said.
