Saying Goodbye

BY ANN PARENTI

Anne Fontaine

Carolyn Muse Grant, David Tupaz, and I visited the Anne Fontaine shop at Caesar’s Forum Shops in Las Vegas to arrange for our next magazine launch party with Anna Stewart-Billings and her staff. Not only are they a valued advertising partner of Chic Compass magazine, but they are also generous contributors to Forgotten Song Foundation and so many others.

Donald J Pliner

While we were there, we stopped in at the going way party at Donald Pliner that was closing their store, along with all their others across the country. That brand, like many, has decided to only sell their products online and to department stores that currently carry their products already. Sarah Alhadithi and her team will be sorely missed. They were kind supporters of many non-profit foundations across the city, including Forgotten Song Foundation where Carolyn and I sit on the board.

Gallery of Music and Art

Then, if that weren’t bad enough, I suggested we go upstairs to visit the Gallery of Music and Art. They also have been strong supporters of ours along with many other non-profit foundations. We have held several events there over the years, and to our dismay, we discovered they also had closed their store this past month.

Henri Bendel

With a bit of time on our hands waiting for our dinner reservations, I suggested we head over to Henri Bendel, which has been a wonderful supporter of Forgotten Song Foundation. I needed to buy one of my favorite perfumes (Suite 712, named after the address 712 Fifth Avenue in NYC, their first store). Well, to my horror it too had closed at the end of December! Not only had this store closed but all 23 stores across the country had closed, including the iconic NYC store. Later that evening, I learned they had decided not to keep an online presence. This one took my breath away! After 123 years of being in business, it was no more.

The first store opened in New York City in 1895. Henri Bendel began as a woman’s hat maker and was known for bringing Coco Chanel to the United States. As a young artist, Andy Warhol was an in-house illustrator in the 1960s for Bendel. It was currently owned by L Brands who also owns Victoria’s Secret, PINK, Bath and Body Works, and La Senza. They decided to close the stores to improve profitability for their other larger brands. I spent the evening trying to locate what was left of the perfume online and found only a handful of options which I quickly bought from alternative sites.

Il Mulino

After this sobering experience, we drowned our sorrows at Il Mulino – New York. It’s a fabulous restaurant hidden on the top floor of the Forum Shop. We had a discussion of what the retail world will look like in the future. It’s an ever-changing climate in the world of retail and it appears to be changing right before our very eyes.

That day’s trip was especially enlightening. We would love to have a dialogue with our readers on what you think the future holds for the retail world. We look forward to your comments.

In closing, we give a fond farewell to our dear friends in the retail world and hope our paths cross again in new beginnings for all of you!