Green is the New Black

Barneys.com is getting clever with its Green initiatives this holiday season. Not only is the homepage Green-inspired, the upscale retailer’s hottest new organic items are highlighted throughout the site. Most notably, it offers a “Green Holiday” video in its “Barneys Babble Live” section.

Hosted by Barneys’ creative director Simon Doonan, and featuring fashion designer Julie Gilhart as a guest, the duo discusses how shoppers can go green this season. Barney’s line Loomstate for Barneys Green features an array of items including the greeniest jean on the planet, with raw organic denim. Other lines include recycled wool scarves and even skateboards. And what better to put your organic items in then Barneys’ recyclable shopping bag—the handles of which are made from corn.

But unlike some online videos, this keeps things interesting.
It incorporates random splashes of quirky drawings (like sheep and trees), while the back and forth banter is entertaining: “[The products] are not like those frightening things you see in health food stores,” Doonan quips in his British accent.

Doonan also discusses the retailer’s holiday gift cards, which say “Green is Groovy” and “Save the Planet” in retro-inspired graphics. “I think they are going to sell really well—much better than the Andy Warhol ones last year,” he notes.

Barney’s site also features an interactive mailer with all Green products. Be sure to check it out, if you haven't yet.

—Samantha Murphy