He changed the mood of the stores by adopting a local-shopkeeper ethos, with in-store events and collaborations. He fixed the product line by seeking out craftspeople worldwide for inspiration and handiwork, with a commitment to Fair Trade Certified products. There wasn’t a curve in the store,” Brett told Fast Company.

“The whole brand was brown boxes made in China. When Brett arrived at West Elm, which had opened its first store in 2003 in Dumbo, he found the products to be drab and spiritless. Brett showed a knack for mixing industrial-inspired furnishings with handcrafted ceramics and textiles. As an executive for Anthropologie and later Urban Outfitters, he honed his taste and “his expertise in merchandising a gentrified bohemian lifestyle to bourgeois consumers,” observed writer Dan Shaw in the New York Times. On his path to West Elm, Brett took part in some of the hottest retail growth stories. Crew Group, in the company’s flagship Madewell store (Photo by Clement Pascal/The New York Times/Redux) This is where the weakness is at the mall–it’s apparel.” And I don’t know who can solve this conundrum. Part of the reason for the carnage is competition from E-commerce, and part a slowness to adapt to changing tastes and shopping styles. “I just think this is a horrible business,” financial commentator Jim Cramer declared today on CNBC. The Limited and American Apparel have closed for good. among merchants of all kinds, including Macy’s, JCPenney, Staples and Radio Shack. The retail industry is reeling, with thousands of store closures in the U.S. His hiring, announced Monday, shook up an already beleaguered apparel industry, in part because he will take over from the legendary “merchant prince,” Mickey Drexler, who had struggled to turn around the once-high-flying company.īrett will have his work cut out for him. His office is in West Elm’s sleek new headquarters in Dumbo’s refurbished Empire Stores, his home is nearby, and he finds inspiration in such borough venues as Brooklyn Flea. But starting next month he’ll become a commuter, taking his talents to Manhattan in his new job as CEO of the iconic clothier J. There is no word yet on what’s in store for West Elm’s previous Dumbo spots at 75 Front Street, 50 Washington Street and 45 Main Street.Jim Brett, departing president of West Elm, at home in Dumbo (Photo by Brad Harris /The New York Times/Redux)Īs president of the home-furnishings brand West Elm, Jim Brett has had an ideal Brooklyn lifestyle.

Two Trees, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Crain’s, reportedly bid on the Empire Stores project but was outmaneuvered by Midtown Equities, led by Joe Cayre. An outdoor seating area and coffee shop in partnership with La Colombe are also in the works. Wet Elm has a 20-year deal for its new space, and will move its headquarters, West Elm store and West Elm market store to the location. Construction on the $150 million Empire Stores project - in which Midtown Equities will redevelop seven 19th Century warehouses with 80,000 square feet of restaurant, retail and event space and 300,000 square feet of upstairs office space - is scheduled to begin in early 2014 and to be completed in the fall of 2015. The new location at 55 Water Street will give West Elm 150,000 square feet of space. Furniture retailer West Elm is decamping from its three Two Trees Management-owned locations to become the anchor tenant at Midtown Equities’ Empire Stores in Dumbo.

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