Is Barneys Finally Returning Downtown?

The Real Deal suggests that Barneys may have finally found the space for the full line store it has said it wants to open downtown, and no, it is is not in the financial district. They tell us, "Barney's reportedly has a lease out with Romanoff Equities for about 50,000 square feet on West 13th Street in an old warehouse."
As with all rumors, we will believe it when we hear it directly form Barneys, but this bit of gossip sounds more specific and plausible than most of what gets thrown around.
Barney's Eyes Downtown (The Real Deal)

Comments

[It's True]

I work at Barneys and it was confirmed that a second NYC store was to be opened in 2009/2010.

The store wants to compete with the other players in the Meatpacking District. While it will be a full-line Barneys, it won't be a "flagship" like the Uptown Barneys or in Beverly Hills, Chicago, San Fran, Dallas, Boston, etc.

This one will be a "Regional" store--a mini, if you will--of which there are currently two:
Barneys in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
and Barneys at Pike Place in Seattle.

These are full-line Barneys that offer mens, womens, beauty, and home goods, but they are always much much smaller.

I am told two things about the store: it will have less of the razzle-dazzle architectural gimmickry that Dallas and San Fran and Beverly have, and will look more "minimal" in the vein of the current Meatpacking style. Also, it probably won't have a Co-Op area, since one lies only blocks away on 17th Street.

It will definitely have womens and mens.

And I'm assuming you guys are up to speed on the Barneys currently being built in Scottsdale, Arizona, right?