It’s been a while since I’ve written anything good about Oak Street (or, indeed anything at all), so it is with much delight that I recap some of the recent events that have been happening in the neighborhood. The big news is, of course, the opening of the new Hermès store....

It’s been a painful couple of years documenting the long series of closures that have turned Chicago’s Oak Street into a shadow of its former self.  The economic crisis has hurt boutiques along the street, and the hit keep on coming. The latest bit of bad news —...

Another Oak Street boutique is taking advantage of the crummy economy to re-tool. The Yves Saint Laurent store at 51 East Oak Street closed last Friday (January 23, 2010).  Word is that the interior is being completely renovated.  The new design is based on plans from Paris and is intended...

Another move is being made in the ongoing retail chess match that is the Oak Street corridor. With Barneys New York now across Rush Street in its new building, the old Barneys New York building is going to…. Hermes. The French luxury retail is going to move from its nice but narrow...

Here are a few more notes about Barneys New York’s move across Rush Street to its new store. The workers don’t have to work weekends for a change as they help ferry the inventory across the street. Barney’s cosmetics department is going to start carrying Bobby Brown and La...