Barneys
 |
|
| Private | |
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1923 |
| Founder | Barney Pressman |
| Headquarters | 575 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York |
|
Number of locations
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27 |
| Products | Clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, and housewares. |
| Owner | Perry Capital |
| Divisions | Barneys Warehouse |
| Website | barneys.com |
Barneys New York is an American chain of luxury department stores founded and headquartered in New York, New York.
The chain operates 26 flagship, boutique, and outlet stores in the United States. In addition, eleven stores in Japan are licensed and operated by a third party.
The company began in 1923, when Barney Pressman opened his first store in Manhattan with $500 raised by pawning his wife's engagement ring in order to lease a 500-square-foot (46 m2) space at Seventh Avenue and West 17th Street in Manhattan with 20 ft (6 m) of frontage. Barney's Clothes was stocked with 40 brand name suits and a big sign with a slogan, "No Bunk, No Junk, No Imitations." Barney's sold clothing at discounted prices by purchasing showroom samples, retail overstocks, and manufacturers' closeouts at auctions and bankruptcy sales. It also offered free alterations and free parking to attract customers.
Barney Pressman claimed to be the first Manhattan retailer to use radio and television, beginning with "Calling All Men to Barney's" radio spots in the 1930s that parodied the introduction of the Dick Tracy show. He sponsored radio programs featuring Irish tenors and bands playing jigs to advertise Irish woolens. Women encased in barrels gave away matchbooks with the store name and address. He also chartered a boat to take 2,000 of his customers from Manhattan to Coney Island.
In a 1973 interview with Business Week, Fred Pressman, Barney Pressman's son, became "convinced that the discount route definitely was not for us. My father and I have always hated cheap goods.... I didn't want to sell low-end merchandise. Now, many of those who chose to are verging on bankruptcy." Fred Pressman's New York Times obituary stated:
Pressman is quoted saying, “The best value you can offer a customer is personal attention to every detail, and they will return again and again. Ultimately, the customer cares the most about how he or she is treated." Pressman died in July 1996.
In 1970, Barney's built a fifth story onto their original building and a five-story addition. The original store was renamed America House and the addition was named International House. The expanded store occupied the entire Seventh Avenue block (between 16th and 17th streets), with 100,000 square feet (9,300 m2) of selling space and 20 individual shops.
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Wikipedia