Henri Bendel
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Henri Bendel is an upscale women's specialty store, established in New York City in 1896. It carries women's apparel, fashion accessories, lingerie and loungewear, cosmetics and fragrances, gifts, and gourmet foods. A small, 2,000-square-foot branch carrying only cosmetics, fragrances, and gifts opened in Easton Town Center in Columbus, Ohio, in 2004.
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[edit] Influence
Bendel's encourages new designers through its semi-annual "Open-See" events, at which vendors can present merchandise to buyers on a "first come, first seen" basis. Designers closely associated with the store include Stephen Burrows, Rick Owens, and Diane von Furstenberg.
The store is well-known for its signature brown-and-white striped shopping bags and an extensive matching line of cosmetics bags. Its Henri Bendel cashmere and merino wool sweater collections, delivered in variety of styles and colors, are also famous. It regularly features "Girls Night Out" special shopping evenings for charity.
[edit] Ownership
Henri Bendel is now owned by Limited Brands. The personality most associated with Henri Bendel is Geraldine Stutz, who was its president for twenty-nine years until 1986 when the store was sold to Limited. She introduced the famous "Street of Shops", the boutiques-within-a-specialty-store concept which later gained wide popularity at the store's former location on 57th Street in New York City.
[edit] Bendel in Fifth Avenue
Located at 10 West 57th Street for decades, Henri Bendel moved to its current location at 712 Fifth Avenue near 56th Street in 1990. The store is located in two landmark buildings, the Rizzoli Building and Coty Building, and a new five-story building. The company was delighted to discover hidden Lalique windows during the restoration of the existing buildings. The store has four stories plus a lower lever, an atrium with balconies, and 35,000 square feet of selling space.
The main floor is home to the Gazebo Shop and many cosmetics brands, most of them in limited distribution. The Gazebo Shop features fashion accessories, with an emphasis on sunglasses and hair accessories. Featured cosmetics brands include Awake, Bobbi Brown, Laura Mercier, M.A.C, N.V. Perricone M.D., Rodan + Fields, Kevyn Aucoin, and, on the mezzanine, Chanel. The store was also one of the first to carry Annick Goutal fragrances.
The second floor features designer collections and accessories, with lingerie and loungewear on the third floor and the Frederic Fekkai hair salon on the fourth.
In May 2007, towering above the bustling streets of New York's fashion Mecca, uptown swank gets a retro resurgence as Alison Nelson unveils Chocolate Bar at Henri Bendel. Situated on the 3rd floor atrium of Henri Bendel located at 712 Fifth Avenue between 55th and 56th Street this sleek new dining destination incorporates the best of fashion, art, style and food into a rich atmosphere that is fresh and inviting, playful and serene, eclectic and chic. Crafted with a nod to the ever-changing caprices of fashion and the inventiveness of the woman who dons the latest trends but mixes them up with flair, Chocolate Bar at Henri Bendel adds mischief to manners with its modern take on high-society savoir faire. Chocolate Bar at Henri Bendel is a devilishly sophisticated playground, where mod counters and open café seating seem to float within the café’s airy quarters. Feminine yet eclectic design elements such as creamy leather couches, eye-catching graphic wallpaper and smooth modernist lighting combine fluidly to add texture to the surroundings and usher the décor into the next generation of cosmopolitan luxe. Despite the refreshingly modern feel, a hint of nostalgia embeds itself within individual, hand-picked furnishings, retro-reconfigured pieces, and the use of rich wood detailing—adding vibrant color to timeless style. A sharp, contemporary interpretation of an aristocratic social salon, Chocolate Bar at Henri Bendel offers a new spin on classic New York fare. The café also serves Chocolate Bar’s famous assortment of treats alongside a sophisticated selection of fine wine and champagne. Enter a world of irresistible influence and edgy refinement, where indulgence is only a teacup or designer dress away. For more information please visit www.chocolatebarnyc.com
Henri Bendel, Manhattan’s legendary Fifth Avenue boutique -- known for fabulous shopping events, frequent celebrity sightings, and dramatic window displays -- has long influenced the shape of American fashion with an unmistakable sense of style and a keen eye for the new and the next in women’s apparel, accessories and cosmetics. One of New York’s chicest shopping environments; Henri Bendel is a destination for the world’s most stylish shoppers. For more information please visit www.henribendel.com
[edit] Locations
[edit] Current Locations
- New York, NY: 712 Fifth Avenue
- Columbus, OH: Easton Town Center
[edit] Former Locations
- Chestnut Hill, MA: The Atrium Mall
- Chicago, IL: 900 North Michigan Shops
- Columbus, OH: Columbus City Center
- Palm Beach, FL
- Paramus, NJ: Garden State Plaza
- Southampton, New York
- Troy, MI: The Somerset Collection
[edit] Trivia
For many years famous for its private brand soap, discontinued in the 1990s, Bendel's in recent years introduced a new line of private brand soap and candles.
