Filene's fancies comeback; Discounter spiffs up image in Union Sq., with more in store.(News)(Filene's Basement Corp.)

Crain's New York Business, November, 2004 by Butler, Elisabeth

Byline: elisabeth butler Filene's Basement may be one of Boston's biggest tourist draws, but its parent company is using New York to show off the most upscale version of the venerable discount clothing store. The spiffy new 90,000-square-foot bargain emporium at 4 Union Square South is the linchpin of Retail Ventures Inc.'s efforts to turn around the struggling chain's 26 stores throughout the country.

Only two weeks after the opening, RVI is already scouting for other locations in the city. "It's the biggest market in the country, and customers really seem to love what we do in Manhattan,'' says Heywood Wilansky, chief executive of Filene's Basement. Going upmarket Two years after acquiring the chain out of bankruptcy proceedings, Columbus,...

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