private equity founded 1986 founder joseph sitt headquarters new york city new york united states products real estate hotels shopping centers retail mixed use total assets 5 billion 1 website www.thorequities.com thor equities is a global leader in real estate development leasing and management of commercial residential retail hotel and mixed use assets with headquarters in new york city london and mexico city . 2 thor equities owns property in the united states canada europe russia india and latin america with portfolio transactions and a development pipeline in excess of 10 billion and totaling more than 20 million square feet . thor s portfolio of assets includes london s historic burlington arcade ; 65 avenue des champs elysees and 51 53 boulevard haussmann in paris ; 777 saint catherine street in montreal ; multiple properties on masaryk boulevard in mexico city ; palmer house hilton in chicago ; and 693 fifth avenue home to valentino s flagship location . 3 4 5 in new york city thor owns retail office and residential properties on fifth avenue and madison avenue as well as in soho flatiron the meatpacking district and brooklyn including coney island . thor also has investments in major u.s. cities including san francisco s union square ; south state street in chicago ; georgetown in washington d.c. ; robertson boulevard in west hollywood ; collins avenue lincoln road wynwood and the design district in miami ; and kirby collection a new mixed use tower thor is developing in river oaks houston . 6 thor offers investment vehicles for institutional investors and foundations seeking to invest in global property markets through its thor urban property funds . 7 thor equities also has several subsidiary companies including retail advisory and tenant representation firm thor retail advisors . 8 contents 1 background 2 ashley stewart 3 development activities 3.1 notable global developments and acquisitions 3.2 manhattan 3.3 brooklyn 3.4 coney island 3.5 chicago 3.6 san francisco 3.7 mexico 4 subsidiary companies 4.1 thor retail advisors 5 non profit activities and honors 5.1 global gateway alliance 5.2 additional non profit activities and honors 6 references 7 external links background edit thor equities was founded in 1986 by president & ceo joseph j. sitt . his first investment was a property sold at tax auction on east tremont avenue in the bronx a chronically under served retail area where he built a one story retail structure with money from family friends roommates parents of roommates . 9 he proceeded to secure national retailers rite aid pharmacy and payless shoes after convincing them of the value of this location . 10 ashley stewart edit ashley stewart in roxbury massachusetts from sitt s early realization of the retail gap that left broad swathes of inner city consumers largely underserved by major retailers he founded ashley stewart a name inspired by laura ashley and martha stewart in 1991 . ashley stewart sold modern and fashionable clothing to women . 9 each ashley stewart store hired from within the community and the company was recognized by president clinton for its contribution to the nation s innovative welfare to work program . 11 ashley stewart quickly grew to over 380 stores in more than 100 cities which prompted many national retailers to follow suit and helped change the urban retail landscape . 9 11 sitt was also part owner of the children s place kids clothing chain as well as marianne stores a retail outlet specializing in clothing for latina women . 11 as business boomed sitt sold his interest in 2000 to concentrate on urban real estate through his company thor equities . 9 in 2004 sitt was profiled by crains new york in its annual 40 under 40 issue which celebrates those individuals in new york city who have achieved success in business before turning 40 . 10 development activities edit thor equities is a global full service real estate development and investment company specializing in acquisitions financial management development property management and leasing . thor specializes in value added investments in high street retail shopping centers malls hotels and mixed use urban projects . today thor s portfolio transactions and development pipeline total over 20 million square feet and is valued at more than 10 billion . 12 thor also created an investment platform to allow institutional investors to harness the growth trends seen in urban property markets worldwide . thor urban property funds investors include investment banks pension funds top tier college endowments and foundations . the funds size is in excess of one billion dollars . 7 in recent years thor has expanded its holdings internationally to include properties in urban cities like mexico city london paris montreal cannes milan and madrid . 13 in a 2012 cover story the commercial observer dubbed joseph sitt the international man of mystery for his organization s growing international focus scope and reach . 14 notable global developments and acquisitions edit thor acquired london s iconic burlington arcade in 2010 for 104 million . the property located in the highly trafficked west end shopping district was built in 1819 and is london s first covered shopping street and a fabled shopping destination . 15 thor s london assets also include 145 oxford street 105 109 oxford street 1 dover street and bond street house at 14 clifford street . in 2012 thor acquired a major retail property at 65 boulevard de la croisette in the heart of cannes france . current tenants there include bottega veneta balenciaga brioni burberry yves saint laurent paule ka jimmy choo and emilio pucci . cannes is a well established international tourist and festival destination for wealthy consumers . 16 17 in paris the company has acquired several properties including 51 53 boulevard haussmann a 30 225 square foot building ; 65 67 avenue des champs elysees ; and 102 avenue des champs elysees . 18 in february 2015 thor acquired a prime retail property at 777 saint catherine street in montreal a historical building located in the heart of montreal s shopping corridor that is currently occupied by banana republic . in 2015 and 2016 thor expanded its european holdings with the acquisition of 9 puerta del sol and 11 puerta del sol in madrid and 26 via della spiga in milan . 19 thor also owns several luxury retail properties in mexico city on avenida presidente masaryk which is known as mexico city s fifth avenue and attracted such retailers as gucci and salvatore ferragamo to these properties . 20 21 in 2016 thor s hospitality division debuted the thompson playa del carmen a premier boutique hotel in playa del carmen mexico . 22 manhattan edit thor is a major retail property owner on new york s fifth avenue and madison avenue . its properties include the former takashimaya building at 693 fifth avenue now leased to valentino for its flagship store ; 685 fifth avenue leased to coach and stuart weitzman ; the charles scribner s sons building at 597 fifth avenue ; 562 fifth avenue ; 530 fifth avenue ; 520 fifth avenue ; 171 fifth avenue ; and 164 fifth avenue . 20 23 sitt has been seen as one of the market makers on fifth avenue helping push retail growth further below the traditional southern border at 49th street . 24 in 2012 thor purchased 680 madison avenue s luxury retail condominium space signing qatari clothier qela to 6 230 square feet in 2014 and exclusive eyewear collection morgenthal frederics . in april 2015 thor leased 7 000 square feet of prime retail space at 680 madison to high end fashion house brioni for its new flagship store . thor has also made significant investments in the meatpacking district betting on the area to continue its climb as a premier retail destination in manhattan driven in part by the high line and arrival of the new whitney museum . the company s significant meatpacking investments have included 837 washington street with taconic investment partners 428 west 14th street and 446 west 14th street . 25 26 thor leased 837 washington to samsung in 2014 and subsequently sold the building for a record price for the neighborhood . 27 thor is also heavily active in new york s soho area and owns numerous properties in the district . in 2013 sitt partnered with several investors to purchase 529 broadway for 150 million . 28 in march 2015 the company leased its entire 15 000 square foot building at 155 mercer street in soho to dolce & gabbana for the brand s flagship retail store . other areas of manhattan where thor owns properties include tribeca madison avenue chelsea bowery flatiron the upper east side and its headquarters near bryant park . 20 in 2014 and 2015 thor purchased a significant number of residential buildings in manhattan including 98 morningside avenue and 838 west end avenue as well as a portfolio of more than two dozen apartment buildings such as 250 west 19th street . in 2015 and 2016 the company acquired additional residential properties at 526 west 111th street 17 west 125th street and 556 566 west 126th street in manhattan . 29 brooklyn edit thor was the first institutional investor to enter this market and now owns a large portfolio of brooklyn properties located in brooklyn heights cobble hill boerum hill downtown brooklyn williamsburg red hook and coney island . holdings of note include a large tract of oceanfront property situated between ikea and fairway in brooklyn s red hook neighborhood and a 200 000 square foot bj s wholesale club on shore parkway that won the award for the top nyc brownfield development in 2016 as well as several prime retail properties on atlantic avenue in the trendy cobble hill and boerum hill neighborhoods . 20 30 another development of note is albee square mall in downtown brooklyn . after thor purchased the mall in 2001 it made various facility improvements in an effort to attract new tenants to the long underperforming property . 31 later in 2005 thor announced plans to build the first tower at the site also known as city point . 32 the building was to be the tallest tower in brooklyn . after the city changed its zoning to permit development of the site thor sold the site and development plan for 125 million to a financial company that wanted to execute on his vision for the property . sitt felt his company had created the vision and improved the area and that it was time to execute a return on investment for his investors and move on . 33 coney island edit thor owns a significant portfolio of property in coney island . in 2005 the company bought a parcel of land west of the amusement district in coney island for 13 million and sold it 14 months later for 90 million . thor then reinvested in more land on coney island along stillwell avenue as well as some boardwalk property including astroland . in 2006 thor announced plans for a 1.5 billion las vegas style amusement park resort to contain a huge glass enclosed water park rides stores and condominiums or time share hotels near the beach which required several zoning changes and soon city hall and thor became involved in lengthy negotiations . the city had a competing vision for coney island and attempted to buy thor s land but thor did not accept the city s offer . the negotiations continued and astroland ceased operations on september 7 2008 . interim amusement rides and a flea market opened in the summer of 2009 and closed later that year . on november 11 2009 sitt reached a deal with new york city to sell part of his 12.5 acres 51 000 m2 of land in coney island for 95.6 million so that the city and thor could jointly redevelop coney island into a world class entertainment