Barneys New York

Man Barneys New York in Chicago is so different from the one in New York. The lay out is good — clean, easy to navigate. Customer service, they don’t even have one? Or ⁹⁄₁₀ of their SA don’t have one. From entering the building till I left, no greeting that I thought nobody can see me that day. SAs were happily talking to each other. When I made eye contact with some of them they looked to the other direction. It’s a Saturday afternoon and not many people are here, now I think I know the reason behind it. Kinda feel the SAs here give people a very arrogant feeling. Don’t know why they are like that but whatevs…

This place needs a new, more friendly and knowledgeable staff particularly on the co-​op and home floors. The private shopping staff is great, but attitude coming from people who make $ 8.50 an hour is not necessary! It seems like a company wide issue but at least the Madison Avenue store never fails with their merchandise selection. I do love Freds — the service is always on point so this review is not at all associated with the restaurant!

I went here today around 1:00pm (a non-​peak time) with the intention of buying a Balenciaga wallet with a matching card case. I understand that I am a college student and was wearing a flannel, but the way the Barney’s team treated me really made me feel profiled. When I walked in, no one greeted me despite making eye contact. I walked upstairs to the wallets and was not greeted by either associate upstairs. I stood by the wallet case looking directly at the wallet I wanted but was not offered any help despite making eye contact again with the two aforementioned associates. I walked around for a while waiting for someone to approach me, but it never happened. I was unbelievably upset and started to leave the store. While walking towards the door, an elderly lady entered the store dressed in a beautiful (and probably very expensive) coat. She was greeted IMMEDIATELY. When I opened the door, no one even offered a «Thank you! Have a nice day!» I refuse to visit this store again until this issue is resolved.

This Barney’s store is really much smaller than the NYC Barney’s on Madision. They have what is to be expected which is high end everything but not a wide selection of goods but a decent selection.
My wife didn’t find what she was looking for so we didn’t spend much time in here but the staff seemed quite helpful and the store’s displays are impeccable as is to be expected. That’s one thing I see at pretty much any Barney’s I’ve been to is that the store is pretty much immaculate and the products are displayed very orderly without a feeling of being overly crowded to too dense necessarily.
Looking down the staircase is like an optical illusion!

The employees on the men’s levels are snobby and are not helpful. They have attitude problems and need to get over it.
However, my review is for Jeffrey in cosmetics on the lower level. He was so friendly and also knowledgable about all the products. Jeffrey wasn’t pushy, but he also wasn’t afraid to recommend a lot of different things for me to try. He went above and beyond for me and even sent me home with samples after spending a lot of time with me. He shipped my purchases home to Minnesota and even followed up with an email to make sure everything was ok. Thanks Jeffrey V!

The above rating is a bit misleading– see below:
Overall service: 5 stars. Attendants on 5 levels were very helpful, friendly, and pleasant to work with. A young man in fragrances (basement), Kim on the main floor, and several staff on upper floors were notable.
Merchandise: 4 stars. A pleasant diversity of lines (a Barneys hallmark) suffered from limited size runs, hence the dropped star.
Post-​visit Support: 2 stars. A return experience was very unpleasant and took several calls and the intervention of the store manager to correct (which he did, to my appreciation). An individual department manager failed to return a phone call and an attempt to make a return (which had to be mailed back to the store) initially was met with no contact or action at all. This was my first experience shopping at a Barneys (previously I had only purchased from them online), and my first as a Barneys account holder. Caveat emptor: Barneys is NOT Nordstrom when it comes to returns. Be triply sure that what you purchase is what you intend to keep… forever.

Not sure who the fashion buyer is. But holy hell there are some of the ugliest pieces I’ve ever seen. Good lord.

Well curated menswear range including stuff that’s hard come by elsewhere in the area, all in one spot. Heads and shoulders above the other department stores in this regard.
A bright, well-​distributed space that allows for leisurely browsing. I generally appreciate that the sales associates will greet then avoid me. I wouldn’t try to engage me either, when I’m jonesing for a retail fix, all glassy eyed and distracted.
Having said that, at my most recent visit, Rob was supremely helpful. Responsive in his suggestions, and with an unfussy style and genuine manner that’s just relatable enough. Also, their semi-​annual sales are well worth checking out; although sizing gets limited, and deep discounts on Lanvin or Dries still leaves a big dent.

I went through so much trouble looking for a purse that my girlfriend wanted for her birthday. Went to Neiman Marcus but unfortunately they were out of stock, Bloomingdale’s, Saks and practically every store was sold out of the Givenchy Antigona purse! Decided to stop at Barney’s and gave it a shot. When I first walked in there I wasn’t greeted right away, practically had to approach a rep myself. Anyway, the man who helped me said the purse was out of stock and did not know when they would have anymore. There went by luck right? I decided to call the next day and spoke to Kim. I explained to her my situation on how I looked for this specific purse everywhere but no one had it. However Kim went the extra mile and took my information down to see if she could have it shipped from another store. Kim called me back the exact day and said she was getting it shipped within 2 days to their store. I was surprised she called me the very next day to tell me she had already received the purse! I went in there that very same day to look at the purse before making the purchase. Kim was super helpful and extremely kind! I ended up making the purchase and thanks to Kim my girlfriend will be super happy! Definitely will contact Kim for future purchases. Awesome customer service!

LOVE this place! Whenever I need to shop for my size in designer wear this is my GO TO PLACE!!! LOVE

the store claims to be high end but with lack of service and not standing behind their product they are not!!!
very disappointing experience i would not recommend!!!
once you buy something there you are on your own you leave the store and you are done!!!

Yes, I love Barneys. Staff are friendly and they carry nice items through out the store in Chicago. Compare to NYC ones, it is not bad at all.
I enjoy first floor accessories area, second floor design area and shoes. They have big sales twice a year — one in summer and one at end of winter. It is definitely worth it to check the store in person during this sale period. Once, I found really cute dress less than $ 500 tag which their original price was much much more… of course.
I like window shopping here too for the ideas. and they also have cute kids section on 6^th floor. I love it.

When guys, especially, do not like to smell themselves coming and going, few vendors offer the range and quality of Barneys. Not to knock the other department stores and discounters but if you have the coinage and want something special, this is the place to go.
I recently spent nearly two hours in the basement to restock colognes. It was busy but I was immediately directed to Trillian. He spent time listening and sharing scents new and old, explaining and confirming all kinds of things about issues like sillage and organics. I also worked with a woman, Melanie, who was super helpful. It was a truly rare afternoon for me and really enlightening. I left happy with new scents and plenty of samples. Whenever I want to buy scents in Chicago, Barney’s is my go-​to. Hands down.

I think Barneys has one of the best all around men’s dept. but they are often over looked. Yes, their prices can be on the high side but they carry only high end designers across their jackets and suit lines. Their shirt selections cover a wider range of prices and their inventory is extensive. I try to shop their during one of their 2 published sales windows and that seems to drop prices around 25−30%.
I have been working with Marilyn for over 12 years and she is amazingly helpful and has a great fashion sense as well.

I went to Barneys today around 12:30 to return some Rick Owens jackets that I purchased online. It was 4 coats that were purchased during the sale. I purchased different colors and sizes online because I don’t have the time and hate dealing with wanna be snobby (uneducated) sales Associates. I took my coats to the second floor to be greeted unprofessional by Toula Virvilos. Instead of processing my return graciously, she gave me a spill about how I should of returned the merchandise in the mail; I should of purchased the coats there; that it’s going to take a long time to process the return; how online shopping is a different entity than the store; and that she will need to call and verify everything. If I wasn’t a human being, I would of let her have it. The best way to rectify the problem is to document, document, document.
Also, Barneys online sent me the wrong shoes in the right box. Someone wasn’t doing their job there. I was told by them that I could bring the merchandise to the store as long as my call was documented. TOULA VIRVILOS said that she couldn’t return the merchandise and that I must return via mail. However TOULA VIRVILOS would do me a favor of mailing it for me and sending me a confirmation to my email when completed; in which she did.
Now to reply to your statement of coming to the store to shop; I don’t want too. Why should I deal with condescending attitudes and classless antics by the likes of you. Keep in mind, TOULA VIRVILOS is the Department Manager for Women’s Designer and Ready To Wear. WOW is all I have to say. I can honestly see why Department stores in the Chicagoland area are dismal.
WOW!

After reading the reviews for the Louboutin store I was turned off and decided to go to Barney’s for my shoes.
I am so glad we did, the staff was friendly when I asked where the shoe boutique was located.
Our saleswoman Lisette was so helpful and really kind. She made sure to address any questions and had great suggestions. I left happy and so glad I skipped the locked door snobbery that the Louboutin store is known for.
She was wonderful and will ask for her in the future:)

Today’s trip corrected my past impression of Barney’s!
I used to think they are stuffy and snobbish — well even today, at first, they were. But it was just one Sales Associate — Amanda, pony tail, white top, a little chubby, works by the first floor designer bags. When I was inquiring about a brand called «Heritage Auction» — a vintage bag company that sells vintage herme bags. She was so snobbish that it was almost funny — I asked her if those bags were pre-​owned and pre-​used by people or were just bought by the company a long time ago, and her reply was cold and rude: «of course they were pre-​owned, that’s the definition of vintage». Then I applauded how beautiful the Kelley bag was, to which she snobbishly responded:” yes of course they are, it’s $ 12,000, we just sold one.“
Um… wow, you just taught me what «vintage» means today. Such an enlightenment. Well, I collect vintage designer bags but thank you for the info. I simply don’t understand why people choose to be so ugly inside while surrounded by beautiful things!
But after this little amusing encounter, I’ve had super pleasant convos and interactions with Amy on the first floor; Jose and Carol on the 2^nd floor; Anna on the 3^rd floor, and Rob on the 4^th floor, and the host at Fred’s was also super gracious and accommodating.
These warm and helpful folks really represent the elegance and beauty of the Barney’s brand — not stuff, not pretentious, yes you can be nice AND fancy at the same time. They have completely changed my impression of Barney’s around. And i really really enjoyed them, and the beautiful products there.
Will come back!

Was looking forward to checking out this store when I was in Chicago last week and I was not disappointed. Great, and well-​organized selection of Men’s clothing and shoes from both popular and lesser-​known designers.
I had the pleasure of dealing with a wonderful, patient SA when I wanted a fitting room, but the others on the floor seemed very cold. I got a bewildered look and a «ummm… I guess» when I asked if I could put my coffee on the front desk while I shopped, and one of the other employees seemed to spend most him his time lurking in corners and staring at shoppers with disdain. Better service than The Bay though, you’d be lucky to even see a single employe there.
However, Fnan found me right away after I picked up a pair of Acnes and started a fitting room for me, then waited for a good 15 minutes while I wandered aimlessly around the store admiring the clothing. Eventually I found a T by Wang shirt I wanted to try on, but they didn’t have my size so he brought out a very nice ATM t-​shirt as an alternative.
When I went to buy the items, he was completely unaffected by the fact that I paid for my ~$ 300 purchase with $ 20s (Canadian without a credit card) and we had a very pleasant conversation about the concert I was in town for. He even gave me some great shopping tips for the area (the best being the Gallery Aesthete recommendation).
Overall I would go back next time I’m in town, but I’m definitely gonna make sure I’m dressed well and ready to spent a significant amount of money. I figure that’s the key to getting good service at stores like this.

This was such a beautifully laid out store, so it pains me a bit to write this. But the customer service here sucks.
I came in to inquire about my next birthday present to myself, the 3.1 Phillip Lim medium Pashli in Cobalt Blue. If that last sentence didn’t illustrate how seriously I take luxury goods, then I’m not sure what will. After browsing the available Phillip Lim bags, I practically had to stalk a salesperson to ask if they had any more colors. She gave me a blunt reply and went on her way to stare off into space. Um, hello? I wanted to ask when BNY would get new shipments, any kind of pre-​orders for F/​W2013, um… Bueller? There wasn’t anyone else around on a boring Tuesday afternoon, so I don’t get why I was ignored. Am I not bougie enough for this place?
Maybe my expectations were too high, but I was extremely disappointed with the service at BNY and chose to purchase my bag from a different department store.

Beautiful store with an amazing selection, but terrible customer service! I practically had to climb a shelf to get a Celine Luggage Tote so I could see the features/​try the bag on. A sales associate who was five feet away saw me, gave me a dirty look and instead of asking if I needed any help, WALKED AWAY! A few minutes later, she was in a different section, talking to another SA. I wandered around, trying on bags but still, no offer for help. At one point, I see these women glaring at me, as if I were a pest rummaging through their precious store. It must be awesome being a 55 year old woman working retail.
I did approach one of them because I was interested in a designer that I didn’t see. The old hag looked me up an down, then told me to try the Co Op on the third floor. The SA up there was somewhat better, but seemed miserable. I found my bag, but they didn’t have it in black. She begrudgingly looked online to see if they had it in stock there and said I could just order it… no offer to have it shipped to the store or anything. Gee, thanks I could have looked it up online myself.
I’ve heard great things about their beauty department, but based on how I was treated, I ain’t coming back!