Long Island, and Nassau County in particular, has long been known for retail. It is the home of Roosevelt Field Shopping Center in the East Garden City section of Uniondale, the Americana Manhasset, a.k.a. the Miracle Mile, and much more.
Retail’s revolution, long before Amazon and the internet, has played out on Long Island. It’s happening again in the age of Amazon but with a more traditional model.
It makes perfect sense that the region’s retail revolution continued last year as London-based Value Retail, one of the world’s biggest high-end retail developers, opened Belmont Park Village, its latest luxury shopping center on a list that includes France and China.
While many Long Islanders know about the region’s older locations, Belmont Park Village introduced a new option with its soft opening in October, adjacent to UBS Arena and Belmont Racetrack. Many more stores are continuing to open.
“We’re building a retail village, which is a high-end boutique mall,” said Matthew Aracich, president of the Building and Construction Trades Council of Nassau and Suffolk Counties.
It’s one of a dozen such retail locations worldwide that Value Retail opened, known as the Bicester Collection Villages, designed for luxury shopping at lower prices.
Value Retail, starting with Bicester Village in 1995, now operates properties in London, Dublin, Paris, Frankfurt, Brussels, Munich, Milan, Barcelona, Madrid, Shanghai, and Suzhou, with Belmont as its newest.
“We aim to create a unique experience for shoppers by offering a blend of brands they know and new names they can discover,” Jason Katz, chief commercial officer at Belmont Park Village, told Schneps Media LI.
The idea is to give a retail lease on life to a location already famous for a race track and now the home of the New York Islanders.
It is located at Belmont Park, home of the Belmont Park Race Track and the Belmont Stakes, the final leg of horseracing’s Triple Crown. Everyone from the Wright Brothers to Jackie Kennedy and Thomas Edison was here, and horses such as Secretariat ran.
Lately, though, in addition to the race track, it has been the site of one of the biggest retail redevelopment projects in the nation.
JRDV Urban International, the project’s lead design architect, said Belmont Park Village includes about 150 stores, restaurants, community spaces, and offices. It also includes three large plazas connected by a figure-eight pedestrian path and a 1,500-car parking structure.
“The Villages are spacious, open-air pedestrianized streets with a curated selection of the world’s leading brands,” according to a spokesperson for Value Retail. “Together with restaurants and cafés serving local and international cuisines, each Village offers a relaxing day out, an hour or less from some of the most important gateway cities in Europe, China and the U.S.”
Location, location, location
Belmont Village Park, in a sense, seeks to create a walkable downtown experience, complete with retail and dining. Aurora, the project’s construction manager, said it seeks to create a “village-type atmosphere” that includes “pedestrian pathways and squares.”
Located three train stops from New York City, it’s also near John F. Kennedy International and LaGuardia airports. A new Elmont train station offers access to Penn Station and Grand Central.
Belmont Park Village, The Park at UBS Arena and UBS Arena provide a unique setting, ranging from sports to shopping.
It’s helping attract attention and some major events. The NHL, for instance, announced last year that the New York Islanders will host the 2026 NHL All-Star Weekend at UBS Arena in Elmont.
“Whether our guests will be watching the talented players on the ice in UBS Arena, a building built specifically for hockey, shopping in Belmont Park Village or enjoying pre and post-game festivities in The Park,” Islanders majority owner Scott Malkin said. “The 2026 All-Star weekend will show NHL fans the outstanding destination we have for hockey, shopping and entertainment.”
What’s in store
Belmont Park Village definitely brings something new to Long Island, but it could also face competition from other retail properties.
It’s less than 10 miles from the Americana Manhasset, AKA the Miracle Mile, with tenants such as Fendi, Burberry, Ferragamo Chanel, Dior, Gucci, Brooks Brothers, Louis Vuitton and Tesla.
Americana Manhasset is seeking to make shopping an even more entertaining experience. They have created a self-guided sculpture walk with works on extended loan from the Nassau County Museum of Art and Americana Manhasset’s private collection. They will soon add high-end retailers, such as Versace.
Roosevelt Field, in Uniondale, is even closer to Belmont, with tenants such as Burberry, Hermès, Louis Vuitton and Rolex. Tanger Outlets may be different, but it still provides a walkable alternative, although Belmont Park Village is carving out its own retail identity.
Belmont Park Village boutiques, including Thom Browne, Palm Angels, René Caovilla, and others, are in a walkable setting. AllSaints, Swarovski, Paige, Longchamp, RAINS, John Varvatos, and Roberto Cavalli are also set to be part of the shopping mix.
“Some brands are opening their first-ever North American off-price outlets,” according to Value Retail.
Aquazzura, Missoni, The North Face, and Vivienne Westwood, among many others, are also set to open, offering discounted luxury items.
Shoppers will be able to dine and shop at LA durée, Le Botaniste, Pret A Manger, and Frost + Fry, developed by chefs Anshu Anghotra, Jeffrey Chodorow, and Robin Leigh.
Hundredfold, an American brasserie flagship restaurant by Patina Restaurant Group, is set to open this spring.
The stores will be accompanied by pop-ups, art installations, as well as restaurants and cafés.
Value Retail is also rolling out guest services, including hands-free shopping, personal shopping, an in-house concierge, and a VIP private shopping space—The Apartment.
Big numbers
Value Retail has rolled out its retail formula worldwide, welcoming millions to its centers. The company said its properties attracted 46 million people to shop and dine in 2023, at stores offering off price retail for some of the world’s most luxurious brands.
They have experienced double-digit sales growth every year except for 2020-2021.
“Our purpose is to inspire the world’s most discerning customers to discover and embrace the world’s most important brands,” according to the company. “We introduce new customers to our brand partners.”
Value Retail said three out of four visitors buy a luxury brand item for the first time during their visit to a Village, and 37% become full-price customers of that brand.
They also attract young shoppers. According to a study by Value Retail, nearly half of visitors are under the age of 35. The average visitor spends four hours at a Bicester village.
Value Retail said gross sales in 2023 rose 16% compared to 2022, as its destinations attracted 46 million visitors, up 13.4 % from the prior year.
Meanwhile, Belmont Park Village obtained an “Outstanding” rating from BREEAM, an environmental certification system, becoming the first North American retail development to receive such a high rating.
The development includes solar panels, top-of-the-line insulation, and energy-efficient systems to reduce our environmental impact and lower heating and air conditioning costs in winter and summer.
