The rise and fall of Barneys, the iconic New York luxury department store teetering on the brink of collapse

For the next three decades, Barneys remained a go-to destination for menswear. It wasn't until Pressman's son Fred inherited the business that the store made its transition into luxury retail.

Source: Barneys

Fred recruited the help of fashion designers Hubert de Givenchy and Pierre Cardin to infuse the store with European luxury fashion and establish Barneys as a destination for men's designer clothing.

Source: Barneys

By the 1970s, Barneys was a full-fledged high-end retailer. Hoping to garner more business, Fred's sons Gene and Bob took on the task of bringing women's designer clothing to the store.

Source: Barneys

As Barneys established its dominance in the luxury fashion market, it helped launch the career of designers like Giorgio Armani. In 1976, the store officially debuted the Armani brand.

Source: Barneys

In the 1980s, Barneys commissioned Ivan Chermayeff to create an official logo, which the store still uses today.

Source: Barneys

In 1986, Barneys ran a series of high-fashion magazine ads featuring then-budding supermodels, Linda Evangelista, Naomi Campbell, and Christy Turlington.

Source: Barneys

That same year, Barneys opened its first official women's store, to significant fanfare.

The store, which was located on 17th Street, became a popular destination for New York's most stylish women. Like the Barneys we know today, it included a restaurant and a hair salon, as well as a comprehensive assortment of designers.

Source: Barneys

Also in 1986, Barneys hired Simon Doonan, the brainchild of the store's iconic window displays. He remains creative-ambassador-at-large today.

By the 1990s, Barneys was ready for global expansion and the retailer began opening stores across the country, as well as in Japan. In 1993, Barney's opened its lavish 230,000-square-foot flagship location on Madison Avenue.

The flagship was a reflection of Barneys' quest to be an exclusive store for the upper echelons of society. According to New York Times fashion critic Vanessa Friedman, the 1993 opening was an "extravagantly unmistakable symbol of that separateness and that aspiration: the largest new specialty store to be built in Manhattan since the Depression, and one that broke all the rules."

Moving into the early aughts, the company opened stores in Boston, Dallas, Scottsdale, San Francisco, and Las Vegas.

Source: Barneys

However, the 1990s also marked the beginning of a period of financial strife for Barneys.

Despite the opening of the flagship, Barneys closed a store in Cleveland and stirred up controversy when its Dallas salon refused to do "big hair" styles.

Source: Funding Universe

Around this time, Barneys also opened its first physical Warehouse location, a sign that the company had finally acquiesced to growing consumer demand for bargain goods.

The brick-and-mortar store built upon the semi-annual sales Barneys first began holding in 1971.

By the mid-1990s, several vendors began to refuse to sell to Barneys due to late payments. The Pressman brothers came under immense pressure from their Japanese financial partner, Isetan, Co, to pay their debts.

Source: New York Times

Though the Pressman brothers continued to hold soirees and celebrate the store, behind the scenes the business was increasingly struggling.

According to the New York Times, the Pressmans continued to tell everyone "business is great" at a Christmas party in 1995, when the reality was that they had made the decision to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

"What the Pressman brothers didn't share over the canapes and sparkling water was that just days earlier, they, along with other family members who serve on the board, had passed a resolution to put the company into bankruptcy, if needed," New York Times writers Stephanie Strom and Jennifer Steinhauer wrote in 1996.

As part of the bankruptcy proceedings, Isetan took ownership of the three largest Barneys locations, in New York, Chicago, and Beverly Hills.

Isetan also closed the original Barneys store and shuttered locations in Houston, Dallas, and Troy, Michigan.

Source: Funding Universe

As Barneys worked to regain its financial footing, it made several high-profile appearances in hit shows like "Sex and the City" and "Will and Grace."

It also went through a period of ownership and leadership transitions.

The company passed through several hands — when the Dubai private-equity firm Istithmar took control, CEO Howard Socol stepped down leaving a vacancy that went unfilled for two years.

In September 2010 Mark Lee was appointed CEO, and he got to work to try to usher in a new era for Barneys.

Under Lee's tutelage, Barneys began experimenting with new retail concepts and partnerships, including teaming with Lady Gaga on the highly anticipated "Gaga's Workshop."

Gaga's Workshop opened in November 2011 just in time for the holiday season, and it included limited-edition products as well as events and performances across New York City.

Source: Barneys

Despite these flashy partnerships, Barneys struggled with its identify as consumers not only began to sour on its elite image, but also to shop increasing online.

Still, "Barneys has cultivated a vaunted status as the place to see and be seen," wrote New York Times writer Gregory Schmidt.

"Designers are willing to cut exclusive deals just to hang their clothes on Barneys racks," he wrote. "The rarefied air draws celebrities looking to buy avant-garde fashion or to introduce their own."

In 2017, Daniella Vitale took over as CEO after first spearheading significant growth within Barneys' e-commerce sector.

Since taking the helm, Vitale has continued to fight an uphill battle for the struggling retailer.

Barneys continued to falter as a result of lost foot traffic, skyrocketing rent, and competition from e-commerce. In August 2019, the luxury retailer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

The company also announced it would close 15 of its 22 stores as it worked on restructuring and refinancing the beleaguered brand.

Source: Business Insider

Barneys is currently in the process of finding a buyer, and it has until October 24 before it will be required to begin liquidation, according to CNBC.

Only time will only tell what the future holds for Barneys.

Source: CNBC

The rise and fall of Barneys, the iconic New York luxury department store teetering on the brink of collapse

Barneys was started by Barney Pressman in New York City in 1923.

For the next three decades, Barneys remained a go-to destination for menswear. It wasn't until Pressman's son Fred inherited the business that the store made its transition into luxury retail.

Fred recruited the help of fashion designers Hubert de Givenchy and Pierre Cardin to infuse the store with European luxury fashion and establish Barneys as a destination for men's designer clothing.

By the 1970s, Barneys was a full-fledged high-end retailer. Hoping to garner more business, Fred's sons Gene and Bob took on the task of bringing women's designer clothing to the store.

As Barneys established its dominance in the luxury fashion market, it helped launch the career of designers like Giorgio Armani. In 1976, the store officially debuted the Armani brand.

In the 1980s, Barneys commissioned Ivan Chermayeff to create an official logo, which the store still uses today.

In 1986, Barneys ran a series of high-fashion magazine ads featuring then-budding supermodels, Linda Evangelista, Naomi Campbell, and Christy Turlington.

That same year, Barneys opened its first official women's store, to significant fanfare.

Also in 1986, Barneys hired Simon Doonan, the brainchild of the store's iconic window displays. He remains creative-ambassador-at-large today.

By the 1990s, Barneys was ready for global expansion and the retailer began opening stores across the country, as well as in Japan. In 1993, Barney's opened its lavish 230,000-square-foot flagship location on Madison Avenue.

However, the 1990s also marked the beginning of a period of financial strife for Barneys.

Around this time, Barneys also opened its first physical Warehouse location, a sign that the company had finally acquiesced to growing consumer demand for bargain goods.

By the mid-1990s, several vendors began to refuse to sell to Barneys due to late payments. The Pressman brothers came under immense pressure from their Japanese financial partner, Isetan, Co, to pay their debts.

Though the Pressman brothers continued to hold soirees and celebrate the store, behind the scenes the business was increasingly struggling.

As part of the bankruptcy proceedings, Isetan took ownership of the three largest Barneys locations, in New York, Chicago, and Beverly Hills.

As Barneys worked to regain its financial footing, it made several high-profile appearances in hit shows like "Sex and the City" and "Will and Grace."

It also went through a period of ownership and leadership transitions.

In September 2010 Mark Lee was appointed CEO, and he got to work to try to usher in a new era for Barneys.

Under Lee's tutelage, Barneys began experimenting with new retail concepts and partnerships, including teaming with Lady Gaga on the highly anticipated "Gaga's Workshop."

Despite these flashy partnerships, Barneys struggled with its identify as consumers not only began to sour on its elite image, but also to shop increasing online.

Still, "Barneys has cultivated a vaunted status as the place to see and be seen," wrote New York Times writer Gregory Schmidt.

In 2017, Daniella Vitale took over as CEO after first spearheading significant growth within Barneys' e-commerce sector.

Barneys continued to falter as a result of lost foot traffic, skyrocketing rent, and competition from e-commerce. In August 2019, the luxury retailer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Barneys is currently in the process of finding a buyer, and it has until October 24 before it will be required to begin liquidation, according to CNBC.

Popular Right Now

Popular Keywords

Buying Guides