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Brooks Brothers is open for business downtown
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A year ago, the Brooks Brothers store at One Liberty Plaza was giving away dust-covered sweaters and shirts to rescue crews working round the clock to help find survivors in the rubble at ground zero. On September 11 of this year, the store opened its doors to customers, with racks of hand-tailored Italian silk suits and stacks of neatly folded cashmere sweaters servings as welcome signs that business in Lower Manhattan is coming back.
The two-level, 16,000-square-foot Brooks Brothers store at Liberty Plaza was severely damaged during the attack on the twin towers. Its windows were completely shattered, merchandise was destroyed, and the structural damage the building sustained made it unclear for months whether it would be safe to rebuild.
 "When we bought the company last year, we didn't know if the store would open or not. We didn't even know if the building was safe," said Mark Shulman, COO of Retail Brand Alliance. Brooks Brothers, the 235-store chain with locations throughout the United States, Europe and Asia, was purchased by Retail Brand Alliance in December from previous owner Marks & Spencer.
Once the building was declared safe, Retail Brand Alliance president and CEO Claudio Del Vecchio made the decision to remain in Lower Manhattan and to rebuild. "We thought we should do everything possible to reopen that store, because it was such a symbol down there and because it was part of our heritage to be in Lower Manhattan," said Shulman.
Brooks Brothers has had a presence in Lower Manhattan since its first store opened in 1818 on the corner of Catherine and Cherry Street. As the Wall Street business area grew, so too did Brooks Brothers, moving to several increasingly larger locations and settling finally at Liberty Plaza soon after construction of the World Trade Center was completed in the 1970s.
A desire to support New York City and Lower Manhattan also figured prominently into the decision to rebuild. "We felt it was the right thing to do," said Shulman. We wanted to be supportive of what everyone is trying to do, which is rebuild Lower Manhattan."
Though still too early to gauge business, Brooks Brothers management is happy with their decision to reopen downtown. "We are very proud to be involved, and we want to do everything we can to revitalize not only our store, but the entire downtown community as well," said Shulman.
CEO Del Vecchio is confident that customers will come back. "We have many loyal customers who we believe will return to the store and help with the economic revitalization of the area," he stated in a press release.
Customers agree and are happy to see the store return. "Their quality has always been good. I'm sure they will get their old clientele back," said Mike Cioffi, a trader at a Canadian investment firm in Lower Manhattan who shopped at the One Liberty Plaza store in the past. Perhaps most symbolic that business downtown is getting back to normal, Cioffi posed the question so many New Yorkers are apt to ask: "When's the grand reopening sale?"
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