Shopping Centers Today is the news magazine of the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC)
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T H E C O M M O N A R E A 12 S C T / A P R I L 2 0 1 6 Barneys return: A boon for landlord Last week Barneys New York opened its second New York City flagship store, on the same block of Seventh Av- enue where the company was founded in 1923, and where it maintained a store through the late 1990s. The new store, in the heart of the trendy Chelsea neighborhood, is great exposure for the luxury department store chain as it burnishes its reputation for avant-garde fashion. It is also a great deal for landlord Equity One, according to CEO David Lukes. "This represents a happy moment not just because of another great choice for Manhattan shoppers, but be- cause it caps an extraordinary redevelopment story for us," Lukes said on an earnings call. "We bought the asset in 2012 when it was occupied by a failing Loehmann's store paying rent of $25 a square foot. Four years later we are scheduled to receive our first rent payment this month, at more than three times the original Loehmann's rent. When you factor in the compression and cap rates for such a flagship store in the Chelsea neighborhood, the value creation has been tremendous." Lukes attributes the firm's success in flipping the space to luck and the ability to "smell value" and take ap- propriate risks. "Barneys in many ways is a case study for what we hope to accomplish repeatedly in our portfolio over the coming ten years," he said. Designed by award- winning architectural firm Steven Harris Architects, of New York City, the 55,000-square-foot new Barneys spans five floors and offers men's and women's apparel, footwear and ac- cessories, plus cosmetics, a barbershop and a restaurant. The store features the most up-to-date technology avail- able: Barneys will be the first luxury retailer to launch iBeacon technology as a way to share such multimedia content as videos, lookbooks and designer interviews to in- form and entertain. Beacons throughout the store have the ability to deliver personal- ized recommendations of content from The Window, Barneys' luxury editorial web- site, to a customer's mobile device. Barneys also built a system using customer-centric per- sonalization that connects online and offline behaviors and preferences to help sales associates serve clients. This "clientele-ing" app is avail- able on associates' iPads, which are also used as mobile point-of-sale devices. SECRET AGENTS Dubai's Department of Economic Development in Dubai has hired 100 mystery shoppers to maintain high standards of customer service in local shops. "Our mystery shoppers include people from different nationali- ties, and were selected by their communication and observational skills," says a statement from the agency. "To ensure a high level of accuracy and effciency, our em- ployees are continuously trained throughout the year." Dubai stores re- ceive quarterly feedback on their performance . b a r n e y s t r a n s f o r m e d a f o r m e r l o e h m a n n ' s s t o r e i n t o i t s n e w e s t f l a g s h i p .