Windows of New York: The Big 6

Saks 5th Avenue

Lord and Taylor

Barneys

Bergdorf Goodman

Henri Bendel

Bloomingdales

Now that the Big Six of New York department stores—Saks, Lord & Taylor, Barneys, Bendel, Bergdorf, and Bloomingdale's—have all unveiled theirholiday windows, it's time for our annual poll. Which store best captured all that is magical and joyous about New York City in late December? And which stores need to step it up next year? It's your call. But first, take a moment to reacquaint yourself with the contestants.

· Saks Fifth Avenue took us to a magical word of bubbles and snowflakes
· Lord & Taylor gave us a peek into city Christmases
· Barneys celebrated foodie culture with chef caricatures
· Henri Bendel created an ode to The Nutcracker
· Bergdorf Goodman asked us to come along and ride on a fantastic voyage
· Bloomingdale's displayed holiday messages via computer animation

Who wins the Battle of the Holiday Windows?

	Saks
	Lord & Taylor
	Barneys
	Bendel
	Bergdorf
	Bloomingdale's

Skip to current results →

via Racked

Barney's Wraps Up Holiday Plans

Via Racked by Izzy Greenspan

Simon Doonan has a new obsession: The foodie universe. Last week, South Beach Food and Wine Festival founder Lee Schrager tweeted, "After meets w/ Simon Doonan+ Barneys team about Foodie Holiday windows, had vivid dreams of sugar plum fairies+pierre herme macaroons tree." We immediately got on the phone with Doonan, who confirms that "Have a Foodie Holiday!" will be the theme of next year's windows. Even better, Barneys plans to spend the whole fall celebrating food culture, with stores across the country hosting tastings, book signings, and panel discussions.
It's still early in the planning process, of course, but Doonan hopes to base the holiday windows around the cult of the celebrity chef—perhaps like this year's Saturday Night Live windows, only with Food Network stars. The foodie world is new to him, so he's talking to Lee Schrager to get a sense of who to highlight. "I feel like Margaret Mead," he said, "Like I've stumbled on a new tribe and I'm studying their habits."

So who will we see in the windows?>>

The connection between food and fashion makes sense, even if it seems contradictory on first blush. "Well, as fashion people, we barely know food exists—kidding!" Doonan said. "We're an upscale specialty store and our customers are completely immersed in the foodie world." So while former model Padma Lakshmi might be an obvious choice for the windows, we could also see Mario "orange Crocs" Batali or any number of other major chefs.

I'm a believer. xo