Barneys New York Files for Bankruptcy

Luxury department store, Barneys New York has filed for bankruptcy. After 96 years of business, the iconic store is looking to be bought out after securing $75 million of emergency financing from Hilco Global and the Gordon Brothers Group.

After struggling to adapt to the new retail and e-commerce climate, Barneys will close its Chicago, Las Vegas, and Seattle stores along with seven of its warehouses. Stores in downtown New York City, Madison Avenue, Beverly Hills, San Francisco and Boston will be retained.

'Like many in our industry, Barneys New York's financial position has been dramatically impacted by the challenging retail environment and rent structures that are excessively high relative to market demand,' said chief executive and president Daniella Vitale. 'In response to these obstacles, the Barneys New York board and management team have taken decisive action by entering into a court-supervised process, which will provide the company the necessary tools to conduct a sale process, review our current leases and optimise our operations.'