Mark lee barneys biography graphic organizers

The luxe emporium is returning to its birthplace in the edgier Chelsea district of New York City after a nearly 19-year absence.

But this isn’t just a move to get closer to the downtown customers who love Barneys but can’t be bothered to shop at its massive main store on tony Madison Avenue.

It also symbolizes a new ethos that has helped Barneys stage a remarkable comeback in the years since it endured a big liquidity scare caused by unrealistic expansion ambitions.

Barneys’s new mindset helped it hit record revenues and gross profit margins last year and comparable sales growth six years running. The key to that ethos: understanding that it is a niche player within the luxury world and reducing its reliance on the discounts its upscale peers are all chasing.

The five-floor, 58,000 square-foot store, centered around a dramatic spiral staircase, embodies everything Barneys is striving to achieve under Mark Lee, its CEO since 2010: