The latest experiential retail space coming to Philly: A Formula One racing arcade

The building on Chestnut Street that housed West Elm until early this year will not remain without a tenant for long.

The over 19,000-square-foot space at 1330 Chestnut St. is no longer available for lease, and multiple sources familiar with the deal confirm that it will be a Formula One (F1) racing simulator arcade.

Formula One is a brand of international single-seat auto racing. It became a sensation in recent years due to the popularity of the Netflix docuseries Drive to Survive.

F1 Arcade allows players to engage in an immersive gaming experience featuring a huge curved screen with a view from the car’s cockpit and another that shows the player’s position on the track. The chair responds to gameplay, vibrating and leaning with the exertions of the vehicle.

In 2022, the company F1 Arcade opened its first storefront in London and this year unveiled its first American outlet in Boston. Two more operations in the United States are listed on the company’s website, one in Las Vegas and one, opening imminently, in Washington, D.C.

The Philadelphia location is slated to open in 2025, according to a press release issued by F1 Arcade on Friday. 30 additional locations are expected to open globally in the next five years.

According to a USA Today report from earlier this year, pricing will be between $20 and $25 for three races. A bar will serve alcoholic drinks and ‘designated driver” mocktails.

The listing agents for 1330 Chestnut St., Scott Benson and Michael Gorman of Metro Commercial, declined to comment. F1 Arcade did not respond to a request for comment at first, but after publication issued a press release.

“We’re excited to announce our fourth U.S. location right in the heart of Philly,” said said Jon Gardner, US President of F1 Arcade, in the release. “Philadelphia, with its rich culture and history, felt like the perfect next step for our U.S. expansion.”

The F1 Arcade fits a broader pattern of experiential retail uses that have been blossoming in Center City since the pandemic.

Retail occupancy in Philadelphia’s downtown was 83.6% in May, almost a point below its September level and well below the 89% of 2019. But while some retailers have shuttered, in many cases following national downsizing trends, a variety of new uses have helped fill the gaps.

Down the block from 1330 Chestnut is the new Barcade, which allows customers to enjoy a beverage while playing vintage arcade games. The national darts bar chain Flight Club opened this summer, and an indoor minigolf course, Puttshack, also opened earlier this year. Longer standing uses like yoga studios, ping pong, ax throwing, and escape rooms continue to be popular and occupy new storefronts.

“These kinds of experiential destinations are reshaping the retail landscape everywhere, and Center City is a perfect example of that,” said Peter S. Fader, professor of marketing at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

“They aren’t all going to survive, but the overall trend is here to stay,” Fader said. “Let one thousand flowers bloom in terms of these type of experiences, and let’s see how it all plays out.”

Some experts have cautioned that experiential retail will have a hard time filling the void left by large-scale traditional retailers like the 23,000-square-foot former Gap at 1510 Walnut St.

But the F1 Arcade is a large enough format that it elides that concern, repurposing one of the newest and largest retail holes near the heart of Center City.

“What a shot in the arm that would be for that bad stretch from Broad to 13th Street,” Fader said.