Wasabi Sushi & Bento — Retail Advisory Services

Engagement Overview — What It Is

Lead the U.S. market entry and NYC expansion strategy for Wasabi Sushi & Bento, an established global grab-and-go brand with a large UK footprint. The mandate required identifying, evaluating, and prioritizing sites across six Manhattan trade areas—Midtown East, Midtown, Midtown West, Hudson Yards, Union Square, and the Financial District.

Scope included market education, site strategy, analytics, touring, feasibility, and LOI negotiation in coordination with executives from the brand’s London headquarters.

Result: Delivered an institutional, data-driven framework that shaped Wasabi’s U.S. entry strategy, accelerated executive decision-making, and established clear criteria for future Manhattan locations.

Brand Objectives — Why It Mattered

Despite international success, Wasabi lacked:

• NYC-specific market intelligence
• Real-time rent and occupancy-cost benchmarks
• Understanding of pedestrian flow and demand patterns
• Access to key landlords controlling corner frontage
• Local negotiation experience required in competitive corridors

Critical requirements included corner positioning, high visibility, throughput-supporting layouts, and feasibility for an operational kitchen build-out. Inventory constraints, premium pricing, and Manhattan’s hyper-local nuances required an advisor capable of protecting the brand’s leverage and guiding informed expansion decisions.

Market Realities — What We Were Solving For

Market Constraints

• Limited corner availability in high-density corridors
• Elevated asking rents vs. UK-based assumptions
• Intense competition for high-visibility, high-traffic sites
• Fragmented off-market information

Operational Constraints

• Strict size, layout, and operational flow requirements
• Need for kitchen feasibility, venting, and MEP compatibility
• Requirement for consistent build-out standards across locations

Risk Profile

• Overpaying for exposure without accurate rent-to-revenue calibration
• Selecting sites misaligned with throughput or visibility requirements
• Entering Manhattan without localized trade-area strategy

Market & Site Strategy — How We Solved It

A data-driven, field-validated methodology was used to evaluate trade areas and isolate viable locations:

• Analyzed pedestrian counts, daytime density, demand drivers, and co-tenancy
• Modeled rent-to-revenue ratios and occupancy-cost thresholds
• Conducted test fits and feasibility reviews with architects and engineers
• Assessed visibility, corner prominence, and access to transit/traffic flows
• Leveraged broker and landlord relationships to surface on-market and off-market opportunities
• Validated site viability through financial feasibility and layout compatibility

Each recommendation balanced Wasabi’s operational model, brand standards, and long-term unit economics.

Execution & Negotiation — What We Did

Controlled the full advisory and negotiation process:

• Structured tour agendas and produced engineered tour books
• Managed LOI versioning to preserve leverage across competitive sites
• Negotiated all key business terms: rent, escalations, deposit structure, LL work, TI, exclusivity, and GG guaranty language
• Coordinated feasibility with architects, engineers, and MEP consultants
• Worked directly with institutional landlords including Tishman Speyer, Vornado, Related, and brokerage teams at Cushman & Wakefield and CBRE
• Ensured transparency, confidentiality, and consistent alignment with Wasabi’s operating model

This approach delivered clarity, speed, and executable decisions for a foreign brand entering NYC for the first time.

Results — What Happened

• Delivered a structured, institutional site-selection framework
• Accelerated executive understanding of Manhattan retail economics
• Identified aligned and misaligned opportunities early, reducing evaluation time
• Provided real-time intelligence on corner visibility, foot-traffic dynamics, and rent thresholds
• Established clear criteria for future sites based on feasibility, layout compatibility, and cost structure
• Equipped Wasabi with actionable data for U.S. market entry and multi-unit growth planning

Brand & Market Impact — Why It Worked

The engagement materially advanced Wasabi’s U.S. expansion readiness:

• A repeatable, Manhattan-specific site selection model was established
• Executive decision cycles shortened due to improved local insight
• Brand expectations recalibrated to actual market conditions
• Prioritized trade areas and pricing strategies became fully defined
• Positioned Wasabi to pursue U.S. growth with institutional discipline, clarity, and confidence

Our market intelligence, negotiation rigor, and micro-trade-area expertise transformed global expansion objectives into a scalable, data-driven U.S. entry strategy.