Sayonara Takashimaya

The legendary Fifth Avenue department store Takashimaya is closing its New York store June 2010, while online shopping will cease on April 2.

A long-standing symbol of international fashion, Takashimaya originally launched in 1958 selling kimonos, and went on to open its Fifth Avenue department store doors in 1993, offering home, garden, and finely crafted clothing and accessories. Takashimaya’s artfully decorated floors include the gorgeous flowers and plants on the sixth floor to the teashop on the lower level.

The company said it plans to sell the real estate and reinvest the proceeds in the faster growing Asian markets. In related news, the company also canceled its plans to merge with H20 Retailing Corp., another Japanese retailer. Takashimaya and H20 announced in 2008 that they would integrate their operations within three years. Though they have multiple stores in Japan, the Fifth Avenue store is their only U.S. location.

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