Luxury streets: the queen is New Bond Street, a leap for Via Strozzi in Florence

The race for luxury brand storefronts continues, but loses as European queen that Via Montenapoleone in Milan remains stable at rents of 20,000 euros per square metre per year, a value that gave it the sceptre of the most expensive street in the world in 2024. Italy remains one of the powers in luxury retail, although passing the record to New Bond Street in London, where rents rise 22% to €20,482. First two European streets in the world, from the picture traced by Cushman & Wakefield's Main Streets Across the World report.The vitality of the Milanese market is moving on to directions such as Corso Vittorio Emanuele, the new barometer of brand confidence: with a 17% increase in rents, it rises to 11th place in Europe and approaches the levels of Piazza di Spagna in Rome."In Montenapoleone, demand remains strong," observes Thomas Casolo, head of Retagil at Cushman & Wakefield Italia, "while the offer is scarce and little aligned to the demands of the brands, in search of larger and more flexible spaces capable of hosting the experience that often integrates the restaurant component as we have seen for Louis Vuitton, Tiffany and Fendi. Other redevelopments are expected, such as the renovation of the new Dior in Montenapoleone. In the rest of Italy, the trend is positive. Rome strengthens its centrality with Via Condotti, third in Europe with rents at €16,000/sqm/year (+7%), while Piazza di Spagna remains in tenth place with stable values. Florence scored one of the surprises of the year: Via Strozzi grew by 30%, jumping to 13th place in Europe and confirming its position among the most dynamic destinations in the Old Continent. The country as a whole is running faster than the European average. London catalyses attention: in addition to New Bond Street, Oxford Street and Regent Street are also growing. Paris maintains solid and stable values on its luxury arteries, from the Champs-Élysées to Saint-Honoré.The global picture is heterogeneous. The Americas lead the regional performance ranking with an average +7.9%. Impressive is the leap of Oscar Freire Jardins in São Paulo (+65%), while in the United States rents are growing more moderately, with New York stable at the top, third in the world with Upper Fifth avenue, and increases of over 8% on Madison Avenue and SoHo. The dynamics of Asia-Pacific are slower: strong increases in the main Indian cities while Hong Kong continues to show signs of weakness.Italy, underlines Casolo, has made an extraordinary journey: from a market absent in the top ten thirty years ago to a stable protagonist on the global podium with Milan, and with Rome and Florence in the European top 20. The main streets of luxury are no longer mere commercial spaces, but true experiential stages, where brands define their image through architecture, heritage and storytelling.The sector is heading towards 2026 in a more stable macroeconomic context. Italian consumers continue to be oriented towards convenience and value, but do not give up on experiences and brands with a strong identity.Among other cities, it is Venice that could register a significant acceleration in the luxury segment, also thanks to the Bauer redevelopment project and a possible rebalancing of the luxury area towards Calle XXII Marzo. Among the other cities, Florence has already shown significant growth, strongly linked to tourism. The trend of shops in resorts in areas such as Capri, Taormina, Forte dei Marmi, Portofino will continue. The street to bet on in the future? There are actually two: Via Filangeri and Via dei Mille in Naples.