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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.
“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?”
They landed on bringing brands—both big and small—on board in line with Barneys’s core values of mixing well-known names with new discoveries. Fashion-wise, the likes of Marc Jacobs, Thom Browne, Christopher John Rogers, and Khaite will mix with beauty newbies that Janes feels are the brands of the future: Reome, Perfumehead, and AKT, with more to be announced as the opening date approaches in just under two weeks.
For Gilhart, this mix of both established and emerging talent was vital: “Barneys was an exciting place where a new brand could get its start. I’m grateful to Hourglass for remembering how they began at Barneys 20 years ago, and now celebrating the many different types of energic talent found in the fabric of New York City”.
Opening in the heart of SoHo downtown (“Barneys started downtown,” Janes is keen to note of the original Chelsea location before the flagship on Madison Ave became its focal point), and kicking off New York Fashion Week on 5 September, it will be open for five weeks, with a program of events and activations making for memorable experiential moments. “We really want people to come on a journey with us and have a little bit of fun, a little bit of theatre, as well as seeing interesting products and discovering brands they’ve never heard of,” adds Janes.
And while the exact program of events is still in development, Hourglass will have a beauty bar in the heart of the space, where you can shop some of their cult classics, like the Vanish Airbrush Concealer, Veil Hydrating Skin Tint, Phantom Volumizing Glossy Balm, or Unreal Liquid Blush, alongside some new limited-edition products. Think: an illustrated version of the brand’s cult Ambient Light Powder, that features designs from Na Kim, the artist who worked on Barneys’ coffee table books.
“The whole idea behind this project is really honoring and celebrating where we came from, and then passing the baton to the next generation,” concludes Janes. “We feel strongly that Barneys helped us and now, let’s pay it forward. It’s time.”
The Barneys New York and Hourglass pop-up store is open between 5 September and 11 October 2024 on 14 Prince Street (at the corner of Prince Street and Elizabeth Street in SoHo).
