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Daniella Vitale, The Business of Luxury Retail

Published on24 NOV 2014

Daniella Vitale, chief operating officer and senior vice president of Barneys New York, discusses innovation in fashion and the business of luxury retail.

On maintaining a customer-centric strategy: “Retail can’t just be about product; it has to be about service and the experience of the customers. There is a lot of competition, so we need to ensure that the experience is as elevated as the product.”

On the marriage of the in-store and digital experiences: “There’s a social aspect to going into a store that will never change. But the physical stores also need a digital presence. There is no “offline-online” strategy, but it’s the integration of the two, and our customer expects that.”

On cultivating talent within Barneys: “It’s not just about picking the next emerging designer or celebrating the legacy of a designer that’s been in the store for 30 years – it’s cultivating the talent that exists within the four walls of Barneys. If we’re going to attract talent, we have to have it ourselves.”

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