10 December 2007
Retail Week's longest running columnist gives his opinion on retail in New York
Last week I headed off to New York for some sightseeing and luxury shopping.
First off was Madison Avenue to see how the other half shop – I was not disappointed. Tom Ford, the man who turned Gucci into one of the most desired luxury brands, has recently opened his own menswear store.
The store has been referred to as the ‘uber bachelor pad’ and has unashamedly been targeted at the man who has everything.
Ford himself says; “It should feel as if old Hollywood has invented a couture salon – very luxe but very chic”.
He does not fail.
From the moment that I entered the store and was greeted in the reception area by an immaculately dressed assistant, every fibre of my body said, “Bernard, you don’t have a Black Amex – turn back you fool”.
Throwing caution to the wind could have been my undoing. However, an early glimpse at socks costing 75 dollars brought me to my senses. I exited the store with the stealth of a commando.
Ford has that rare talent – an eye for the feel of the fashion moment coupled with a very commercial business brain. With plans to open more stores, Ford will continue to demonstrate why he is one of the most influential individuals in the fashion world.
Ever the glutton for punishment, I continued down ‘The Avenue’ to inhale more fashion at Barneys, the luxury department store. Beyond and behind the luxury of the products and the store environment, lies one of Barneys real points of difference – Humour.
The now legendry window and instore displays carry the handwriting of the Reading born Creative Director, Simon Doonan.
Every time I visit Barneys, I am always taken by the searing inventiveness of the displays. The current mannequins are visually arresting, yet at the same time they also make you smile – not an easy trick to pull off.
To give you some idea of Doonan’s gift, read his wicked book, “Confessions of a Window Dresser” – the opening chapter “Growing up gay in a house filled with lunatics” – gives you some idea of what you are in for.
The highlight of this trip was a long overdue visit to The Vinegar Factory, a gourmet food store located in the Upper East Side.
The ‘authentic industrial’ retail space is some 300 square meters, with a further 600 square meters dedicated to preparing fantastic food and, equally importantly, always seeking to avoid waste.
Old bread is turned into bread puddings. Fruit past its sell by date becomes luscious preserves.
The store has it’s own café and to literally top it all off, there is a rooftop greenhouse, visible from the street, where fresh produce is grown.
For me it is the fantastic range coupled with staggering abundance that gives The Vinegar Factory it’s powerful presence and the fact that it’s off the beaten track, makes for an all-round shopping treat.
To ensure that the uber rich shoppers, too busy rushing between Tom Ford and Barneys, do not go without as they escape the city at the weekend, I noticed a very smart sign at the checkouts – “We deliver to the Hamptons” – Oh to be a merchant banker.
