Barneys’s New Chief Explains Those Changes

“I’m a worker, not so much a talker,” Mark Lee, the chief executive of Barneys New York, said Friday morning, explaining his reluctance these last few months to publicly discuss his makeover plans for the store. Mr. Lee, the former chief executive of Gucci, arrived at Barneys in September. Still, his changes have been hard to miss. They include the dismissal in December of Barneys stalwarts Judy Collinson and Julie Gilhart and the hiring of Daniella Vitale, a former Gucci colleague of Mr. Lee’s, as chief merchant and executive vice president; and the somewhat unconventional choices of Dennis Freedman as creative director — responsible for windows and visual displays, among other things — and Amanda Brooks as fashion director. Mr. Freedman is best known for his work at W magazine, while Ms. Brooks, a onetime Vogue editor, was fashion director at William Morris Endeavor Entertainment. As it turned out, Mr. Lee had a lot to say over breakfast with a few journalists. Joining him were Ms. Vitale, Mr. Freedman and Tom Kalendarian, the chief merchant for men’s fashion. Mr. Lee stressed that his mission for the luxury retailer was to make it surprising and dynamic. “But,” he added, “there’s never going to be a day when we say ‘ta-da’ and drop the curtain.” The changes will be a work-in-progress over the next few years, he said. The most obvious will be the renovation of the main floor of the Madison Avenue store, which will be completed in early 2012. There will also be changes on the Co-Op floors; the men’s Co-Op will move to the eighth floor and connect to the women’s side. Mr. Lee declined to elaborate on the redesign since an architect has not been announced. The Beverly Hills store will also be updated, but Mr. Lee did not expect changes at newer Barneys locations. (He also said that no flagship stores would be closed.) A new advertising campaign will start this Sunday, called “Backstage” and based on images taken during the last round of shows in New York and Europe by photographers like William Klein, Nan Goldin and Juergen Teller. Mr. Lee said he recalled the graphic sharpness of some of Barneys’s early campaigns — indeed, from a time before newspapers switched to color — and the backstage pictures were a way to do something visually interesting during a transition period. On Monday, the store will add “The Window” to Barneys.com, with news about what’s happening at Barneys and its vendors.