Just How Different Are You?

With the totally expected news that Barney's New York is filing for bankruptcy protection, one more bricks-and-mortar store finds itself in a tight spot from the ongoing restructuring of the American retail sector. What is notable about Barney's is the notion of being different from all other stores.

"From the beginning — especially in the beginning — Barneys held itself apart from the other department stores, not only in New York but pretty much everywhere ... As Gene Pressmen, the grandson of Barney Pressmen, the founder, told The Times: 'Of course, there are a lot of stores uptown. But there’ll be only one Barneys. We’re different.'"

In the end, though, Barney's is governed by the same iron-clad law of retail that covers all other stores and every private, independent school: one must generate sufficient margin to remain a going concern. Maybe no one is really as different as they wish to be.