Meta announced it is signing a 10-year lease with Vornado Realty Trust to turn its Meta Lab location in Midtown Manhattan into a permanent flagship.
The company said Wednesday that the 697 Fifth Ave. store, which opened as a pop-up in November, will now serve as a permanent showcase for its lineup of AI glasses and virtual reality products.
Meta Lab is designed as a hands-on retail space where visitors can try the latest AI glasses offerings, immerse themselves in virtual worlds with Meta Quest, and explore other Reality Labs hardware.
“We’re proud to make a long-term commitment to Fifth Avenue, the heart of US retail,” Meta exec Matt Jacobson said in a statement.
The tech giant designed the store to give it a New York flavor — with installations and partnerships tied to the city’s skate scene and local artists.
Bob Phibbs, CEO of retail consulting firm The Retail Doctor, voiced skepticism of the undertaking.
“Sunglass Hut is selling more Ray-Ban Metas before noon on a Tuesday than this store will sell all week,” he said. “Meta knows that. This location is a press release with a lease.”
The location includes an archival wall and timeline developed with Zoo York, a mural and artwork from Zered Bassett’s “Paper Skaters” series, gear and ephemera from Rookie Skateboards and an interactive gallery from Evan Mock.
The store also features a coffee bar serving beverages from Buddies Coffee Roasters.
Meta said each Meta Lab is shaped by its neighborhood and will continue to evolve over time, with the New York flagship expected to highlight elements of culture in the city and beyond.
The Manhattan store builds on a broader Meta Lab expansion that includes locations in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Honolulu and Burlingame, Calif.
Meta has said demand for in-person demos has been strong, particularly for products such as Meta Ray-Ban Display and the Meta Neural Band.
Meta’s footprint in New York City remains sizable but has been streamlined in recent years, with roughly 5,000 employees now concentrated across a handful of major Manhattan office hubs.
The company’s largest Big Apple presence is anchored at 50 Hudson Yards, a roughly 1.5 million-square-foot lease signed in 2019 that serves as its primary New York base, alongside major offices at the Farley Building on Ninth Avenue and 770 Broadway near Union Square.
After a wave of layoffs and cost-cutting, Meta has scaled back on space — including giving up offices at other Hudson Yards buildings — and consolidated operations into its core sites.
