Barneys’ New York Flagship Store to Remain Open for at Least a Year Following Bankruptcy Sale

Barneys New York Inc’s flagship Madison Avenue outlet in Manhattan will remain open for at least another year, albeit in a slimmed-down form, while the buyer of the luxury retailer negotiates with the store’s landlord. A bankruptcy judge approved the sale of Barneys brands and other intellectual property to Authentic Brands, a firm that acquires and licenses brands, last Thursday. The deal closed on Friday, Authentic Brands said. The New York store generates about $20 million in annual profitability for Barneys, even with a recent raise in rent, according to Daniel Levy, president of real estate investment firm Ashkenazy Acquisition Corp, the store’s landlord.

Total Retail's Take: The iconic retail location will be turned into a pop-up store, encapsulating the struggles of traditional brick-and-mortar retailers. New owner Authentic Brands plans to license the Barneys brand to Hudson’s Bay Co-owned Saks Fifth Avenue, and will open Barneys shops in Saks locations across the U.S. and Canada. That will start with an attempted Barneys reboot on the fifth floor of the Saks Fifth Avenue location in Manhattan. Remaining Barneys stores are expected to close. While the Barneys name won't be going away, its place as a fashion outpost for New Yorkers and others will be. The Barneys name still has cache — which Authentic Brands is looking to cash in on — but the business struggled to adapt to a changing retail landscape, while also dealing with higher rents for its urban store locations.