In 1826, in a New York City populated by just 175,000 people, Samuel Lord and George Washington Taylor opened the first Lord & Taylor in downtown Manhattan, beginning an impressive roster of firsts in department store history. Overflowing with fine satins, silks, and lace, the store prospered from the outset and continued to move ever northward as the city expanded, finally settling into its present address at 424 Fifth Avenue. Innovation and clever business strategies abounded. Onyx, the first black hosiery sold in America whose color did not rub off onto the skin, was a marked success. The beautiful show windows, lavishly trimmed for the holidays below ground and then raised up to street level via automatic lifts, are always a seasonal spectacle. And the store's excellent, efficient customer service, complete with valet-attended dressing rooms, continues to outpace that of its competitors. In 1945, Dorothy Shaver became the first female president of a major retail establishment when she took the reins at Lord and Taylor, encouraging the promotion of talented young American designers such as Clare Potter, Helen Cookman, Sally Victor, Tom Brigance, and Vera Maxwell and bringing a focus that had often strayed to France back home to create "the American look." Today, Lord and Taylor's presence both in New York and across the globe is bolstered by its Shop Smart, Do Good initiative, an all-day shopping event raising money for nonprofit organisations. Online, the newest discoveries in American clothing, accessories, food, and lifestyle are shared in the Birdcage shop-in-shop, and fashion trends given the L and T stamp of approval are featured in The Closet. Told not chronologically but through various key themes, this book recounts 200 years of vibrant Lord and Taylor history. AUTHOR: Nancy MacDonell is a journalist and author who has written on fashion, style, and culture for a wide range of publications, including The New York Times, Elle, and W. She is also the author of The Classic Ten: The True Story of the Little Black Dress and Nine Other Fashion Favorites and In the Know: The Classic Guide to Being Cultured and Cool, a coauthor of Katharine Hepburn: Rebel Chic, and the author of The Shoe Book, published by Assouline in 2014. MacDonell was born in Montreal and lives in New York City with her family. 100 illustrations
