Henri Bendel
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| Subsidiary | |
| Founder | Henri Willis Bendel |
| Headquarters | 712 Fifth Avenue New York, New York |
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Number of locations
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29 Stores (Jan 2015) |
| Parent | L Brands |
| Website | www |
Henri Bendel, established in 1895, is an American upscale women's specialty store based in New York City that sells the Henri Bendel brand of handbags, jewelry, luxury fashion accessories, home fragrances and gifts. Its flagship New York store is located at 712 Fifth Avenue.
Henri Bendel was the first retailer to have its own fragrance, to offer in-store makeovers, and to stage its own fashion show. The retailer is credited with developing the shop-within-a-shop merchandising concept that’s in use in some department stores today.
Henri Willis Bendel was born in Louisiana in 1868 and moved to New York to work as a milliner. He opened his first shop, in Greenwich Village, in 1895. In 1907, he began branding the brown-and-white striped boxes that are still identified with the company. In 1913, Henri Bendel was the first retailer to sell Coco Chanel designs in the U.S.
After Bendel’s death in 1936, his nephew became the store’s president and served until his retirement in 1954. Bendel's nephew, who later founded Belgian Shoes, died in 1997.
Geraldine Stutz was president of Henri Bendel from 1957 to 1986. Stutz had “a legendary eye for discovering the newest designers and using them first,” including Perry Ellis, Jean Muir, Sonia Rykiel, Carlos Falchi, Mary McFadden, and Ralph Lauren. In 1958, Stutz turned the store’s main sales floor into a “U-shaped ‘Street of Shops,’" which some consider the forerunner of today’s shop-within-a-shop merchandising displays.
During the 1960s, Andy Warhol was an in-house illustrator. Beginning in 1994, Izak Zenou’s illustrations have appeared on Henri Bendel ads and promotional materials.
In recent years, the retailer has aimed to grow from an “iconic New York brand” into “a nationally recognized accessories company.” Beginning in 2008, the brand expanded beyond the New York store to become a national chain with 28 stores (in addition to the NYC flagship) across the U.S. In 2009, Henri Bendel stopped selling apparel. In 2014, the New York flagship store and website began selling only Henri Bendel-branded handbags, jewelry, fashion accessories and home fragrances, following the model set at its other stores.
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Wikipedia