Stocked with casual, yet meticulously constructed, women's and menswear lines from the likes of Marc Jacobs, Phillip Lim, Rag & Bone and Alexander McQueen, the store is slated to take over 9,750 square feet on the ground floor of 10 Rittenhouse Square. Part of a $300 million luxury condominium project at 18th and Walnut Streets, Barneys Co-op is expected to open in September 2008.
"The Co-op is a great way for us to get our feet wet and introduce ourselves to the Philadelphia clientele," said Doonan, promising in a biting British accent that Philadelphia's Co-op would be on par with New York's.
"We like to think of the Co-op as a laboratory where the experiments never hurt. There is a big opportunity for us in Philly."
Doonan would not comment on whether a Barneys New York would come to the region.
While boosters are near ecstatic about what Barneys Co-op will mean for the city's style rep, the cautious are watching and waiting.
Yes, Naidoff said, 90,000 people live in Center City and more than 250,000 commute here every day to work. But the retail growth is still contingent on high-end housing, which is not immune to abrupt shifts.
And there's still room for improvement, some shoppers sniff. After all, the new stores are all considered "high-end casual," not "high-end chic" - and the difference separates style leaders from style followers.
"It is great that when a national retailer comes in, we can sustain it," said Nicole Cashman, a Philadelphia-based fashion publicist. "People aren't boarding up their businesses like they did 10 or 15 years ago.
"But it'll really be a sign when we see a Gucci, Louis Vuitton or Prada come to Center City. That will truly be the icing on the cake."
Contact fashion writer Elizabeth Wellington at 215-854-2704. To read her latest stories go to http://go.philly.com/elizabethwellington. 
