If, over the next few weeks, you should find yourself in New York City, and notice some commotion around the SoHo area—Prince Street, to be precise—then here’s a little secret. Storied department store Barneys New York is back, for a limited time only.
Having shuttered in 2019, Barneys has been much missed in the beauty and fashion retail landscape. Much more than just a store, it was a cultural barometer of all that was cool (the in-store restaurant, Fred’s, was the place to be seen at lunchtime on a weekday), and the launchpad of too many brands to count.
One of those brands was Hourglass Cosmetics, which first entered the public consciousness via the Barneys shop floor some 20 years ago. On a mission to find a fitting way to celebrate two decades of the brand, Hourglass founder, president, and Barneys devotee, Carisa Janes, has decided to bring it back.
Jimi Franklin
“Barneys was such an iconic New York institution and we were all so sad when it disappeared,” explains Janes, the LA-based Hourglass founder, who has been living in New York for the best part of three months in the run-up to the pop-up opening. “It was like a family. They were in it with you—the highs, the lows—they were like parents, the mentors and bosses there. It was just an incredible way to start a business and have all that support.”
What started as a pie-in-the-sky “wouldn’t this be fun?” idea gained momentum when Janes spoke to former Barneys New York creative director, Simon Doonan, and ex-senior vice president and fashion director, Julie Gilhart, who both immediately said they were in.
“Once we knew the idea had legs, we asked ourselves if we could really bring back the essence of the things that we missed about Barneys. The expectation is so high. There are so many who have these amazing memories and nostalgia for it all, how do we do it justice?”