Old School, New Fashion

Before there was Forever 21 and H&M, there was Mandee.

The value-priced juniors chain was doing fast-fashion decades before the phrase became a retail buzz term. Now the stores are being spruced up with a new prototype designed to evoke a nightclub feel and shine a more dramatic spotlight on Mandee’s merchandise.

The makeover comes as the retailer, with stores mostly in the Northeast, eyes national and international expansion. That’s a big leap from the small cotton goods store that Molly Mandelbaum and her sons Max, Leon and Bernie opened after World War II in Brooklyn, N.Y. The merchandise mix was simple then: house dresses, aprons and blouses.

Today, the 124-unit retailer sells apparel, footwear, lingerie and accessories to a core customer base of 17- to 25-year-old women, although thirtysomethings to fiftysomethings who wear a junior cut also shop the chain, says CEO Ken Mandelbaum.

Mandee’s new look serves a dual purpose, Mandelbaum says. It’s for “those who haven’t seen how we’ve developed and grown because they haven’t shopped us in a while, and people who are just learning about us.”

The makeover
Working with architectural firm Tricarico, Mandee set out to declutter the store space and craft a high-energy, bright, open shopping environment “that feels like a hot nightclub” and better showcases coordinated looks, Mandelbaum says.

The redo of the 8,500-sq.-ft. unit on 14th Street in Manhattan introduces a space designed to evoke a runway, where fully accessorized mannequins are draped in Mandee’s apparel and accessories. Bold, graphic photos of models styled in the retailer’s outfits pepper the walls, and merchandise focal points are created throughout the store.

The shoe department has been reworked so that brands like XOXO and Steve Madden are artfully displayed, co-mingling with coordinating accessories. Nondescript fixtures have been replaced with decorative, colorful tables that spotlight handbags, Mandee-branded jewelry and beauty products like E.L.F. cosmetics. Seating areas have been added near the roomier and better-lit fitting rooms.

The Manhattan store joins remodeled locations in Clifton, N.J. and Chicago; Mandee plans to retrofit its other stores over time to reflect the new concept.

More exclusives, faster fashion
Mandee is always scouring the globe “for the hottest, most exciting merchandise,” Mandelbaum says. Daughter Jenny Herman, the company’s director of product development, recently returned from Barcelona and London, where she worked with the vendor community “to create the designs that our customer wants.”

Mandee’s buyers are in the market three to four days a week, be it stateside or overseas, and the stores receive merchandise shipments with similar frequency. While the product assortment is about an equal mix of brands like Almost Famous and Hydraulic Jeans, as well as exclusive fare and private label merchandise, the balance is starting to tip toward proprietary goods, Mandelbaum says.

The plan is to design more products in-house and work with suppliers on exclusive merchandise, be it an outfit, color or detailing of an item.

Newer, larger chains may generate more publicity, but Mandelbaum is convinced that longevity and a well-honed feel for fashion count for something. “We’ve been around for 60 years,” he says. “It’s our eye.”

What’s more, “One of our great strengths is that we have a lot to choose from … and our fashions are well coordinated.”