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Frustrated Barneys workers say their liquidating store has devolved into chaos and become a 'free for all' of rampant theft
Frustrated Barneys workers say their liquidating store has devolved into chaos and become a 'free for all' of rampant theft
Bethany BironJan 9, 2020, 21:50 IST
Bethany Biron/Business InsiderA bleak scene at the Barneys 7th Avenue store.
Frustrated Barneys workers say conditions at the 7th Avenue store location in New York City have devolved into a "free for all" with rampant theft. Adding to their woes, a "cyber incident" on Friday delayed paychecks by nearly a week.
Business Insider spoke to four employees who said high turnover and understaffed floors have caused rising rates of stealing, which one staffer estimated to amount to thousands of dollars' worth of loss. Some team members blamed this on poor communication from Barneys leaders.
"I think all of us are pretty much over it because we've been through so much in the past year," one employee told Business Insider. "We're ready for it to be over at this point."
Authentic Brands Group, which purchased Barneys out of bankruptcy in November, said it is "not in the position" to comment on the issue. Likewise, representatives for B. Riley Financial, the company overseeing the liquidation process, declined to comment.
For beleaguered Barneys employees, nearly a week without pay was just the latest incident in a series of frustrating events that have occurred in recent months amid a chaotic liquidation process.
According to four Barneys employees interviewed by Business Insider on the basis of anonymity in order to protect their jobs, conditions at the 7th Avenue store in New York City have devolved significantly since the department store's bankruptcy and subsequent acquisition by Authentic Brands Group. The employees - who have worked for the luxury department store in durations ranging from one to four years - reported that understaffed floors have contributed to growing rates of theft, leading to an estimated thousands of dollars' worth of loss.
During a visit to the liquidating store on Wednesday afternoon, employees were seen milling about aimlessly among bare shelves and displays of haphazardly strewn products. Malaise was palpable among team members, many of whom expressed frustration over delayed paychecks caused by a "cyber incident" Friday that left them unpaid for nearly a week. Employees said they were paid on Thursday morning.
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Meanwhile, a lack of functioning WiFi due to the incident has caused internal systems to malfunction, preventing employees from tracking hours and sales. With the system down, the 7th Avenue store had to manually force registers open on Tuesday, causing a two-hour delay in opening, one employee who has worked in the men's shoes department for four years said.
"It's been a mess, just a mess," this employee said. "It's upsetting. Nobody wants to work and not get paid. Especially under these circumstances, the last thing you want to do is not get paid."
Bethany Biron/Business InsiderAn employee walks down 18th Street with a promotional sign strapped to his body.
According to a sales associate specializing in women's accessories and jewelry, the environment at the 7th Avenue stores has become a "free for all," with customers regularly walking out with five-finger discounts without apprehension.
"It's been very difficult for the whole team," she said. "People are very threatening toward us physically and verbally. There's nothing we can do. We have to sit here and take it and hope it doesn't get physical."
In December, at the height of the holiday shopping season, Barneys employees at the uptown Madison Avenue location were physically attacked while apprehending two women stealing a Moncler hat, according to the New York Daily News. In video footage of the incident, the women can be seen lashing out by hitting and scratching employees who chased after them into the street.
In response, members of the New York Police Department began manning both the Madison and 7th Avenue locations for the rest of the month, according to employees interviewed by Business Insider.
The women's accessories specialist said part of the issue is that high turnover rates have left a void in the company's loss-prevention department. In the past, staffers were incentivized to stop theft and would receive a percentage of the preserved sale toward commission rates, but this policy no longer exists, three employees said.
Additionally, existing security guards have varying levels of apprehension training, making it difficult to stop thieves in their tracks.
"We have a lot of theft, so much so that we've had to lock up every single bag on my floor," the accessories specialist said. "We were robbed twice in one week once, and in the summer, we had droves of kids just coming trying to steal from us."
Thieves on the loose
A men's department worker confirmed rising incidents of theft, noting that in recent weeks as liquidation intensified and discount percentages went up, she's witnessed stealing during an average of two shifts per week.
"People steal a lot because there's not really much security left here, so there's no way to regulate what's going on," she said, adding that as a result of the commission policy shift, "there's no incentive to stop people."
In response to request to comment Wednesday regarding delayed payments and theft in stores, Authentic Brands Group said it is "not in the position" to make a statement, adding that "ABG is the owner of the intellectual property of Barneys and did not purchase the inventory or store leases in the acquisition."
Representatives for B. Riley Financial, the company that has been overseeing the Barneys liquidation and transition process, also declined to comment. Additionally, lawyers at Kirkland & Ellis LLP serving as listed counsel to the debtors in the Barneys bankruptcy proceedings did not return request to comment.
Communication woes
The men's department employee — who has worked for the company for a year and weathered the storm of bankruptcy and acquisition — described communication between Barneys executives and sales associates throughout the process as "horrible."
She and her 7th Avenue peers learned of the sale to Authentic Brands Group and the possibility of losing their jobs via news reports two full days before a company email was sent.
"I think all of us are pretty much over it because we've been through so much in the past year," she said. "We're ready for it to be over at this point."
Further, employees at the 7th Avenue location said there has been no announcement of an official store closure date, other than murmurs from managers that operations will cease on February 15. In the remaining weeks, some have been left to scramble for new jobs, while others bide their time for the end of their Barneys experience.
"It's a struggle, especially the timing, it's awful, the timing is bad," said the four-year employee in men's shoes. "Technically it's still in the holiday season so to try to get a job when [retailers] are only hiring for temp positions or seasonal is hard."
An uncertain future
As the employees plan for the future, the Barneys website has officially shuttered. Barneys.com redirects to Saks Fifth Avenue's website, which is now hosting remaining online liquidation sales.
For now, the reputation of the iconic New York retailer, and the future of its remaining employees — and whether or not they'll be paid this week — remains in the balance.
"I'm hopeful [we'll get paid], but not certain," the men's department employee said. "They've thrown us for a loop before so honestly anything could happen tomorrow, or the next day, or next week, we really don't know at this point."
