Fortunoff
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1922 |
| Founder | Max Fortunoff, Clara Fortunoff |
| Headquarters | New York , United States |
Area served | New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Texas (affiliate) |
| Products | Outdoor furniture, fine jewelry |
Fortunoff is a retailer headquartered in New York, specializing in outdoor furniture and fine jewelry. Established in 1922 by Max and Clara Fortunoff, the business changed hands to private equity firms in 2005 and again in 2009, before being repurchased by the Fortunoff and Mayrock families, who revitalized its core segments of outdoor furniture and jewelry.
Operating under a license granted to Furniture Concepts, Fortunoff Backyard Stores manages 33 outlets throughout New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. Together with its affiliate Chair King in Texas, it ranks among the largest independent dealers of outdoor furniture within the United States.
Fortunoff Fine Jewelry, licensed through Esther Fortunoff, runs a single retail location at Lesso Home New York in East Garden City, Uniondale, complemented by an e-commerce platform.
History
The initial Fortunoff store was established on Livonia Avenue in Brooklyn’s Brownsville neighborhood. The flagship store debuted in 1964 in East Garden City on Long Island and subsequently became an anchor tenant at The Mall at the Source. The company operated four comprehensive stores—in Westbury (flagship), White Plains (NY), Woodbridge (NJ), and Wayne (NJ)—as well as 16 specialty outlets under the "Fortunoff Backyard Stores" banner that focused on jewelry, fine gifts, and indoor/outdoor furniture across New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania.
Confronted with financial difficulties, Fortunoff filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on February 4, 2008. This filing coincided with a $100 million acquisition by NRDC Equity Partners—the parent company of Lord & Taylor—which also assumed approximately $60 million in debt. Industry observers expected Fortunoff-branded departments to be integrated into Lord & Taylor’s 47 stores, including its flagship Fifth Avenue location. NRDC had plans to invest another $100 million to grow Fortunoff’s footprint to more than 50 locations but ultimately did not execute this expansion.
In July 2008, NRDC acquired the historic Canadian retailer Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), creating Hudson's Bay Trading Company—a conglomerate encompassing Fortunoff, Lord & Taylor, Creative Design Studios, alongside HBC’s divisions such as The Bay and Zellers.
On February 5, 2009, due to a disappointing holiday season and ongoing recessionary pressures, Fortunoff filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy once more. Efforts to sell the luxury goods chain were unsuccessful; layoffs began at the Uniondale headquarters. A class-action lawsuit was filed alleging violations of the WARN Act related to these workforce reductions. Controversy arose when vendors increased consignment shipments prior to the bankruptcy filing; NRDC structured its Fortunoff entities as secured creditors.
Fortunoff stopped accepting gift cards as of February 17, 2009. A bankruptcy auction was scheduled for February 23; liquidation sales commenced on February 25 and concluded by June that year. Plans to rebrand Lord & Taylor’s fine jewelry and home furnishing departments under the Fortunoff name were abandoned. Remaining diamonds from the jewelry division were auctioned through SimplexDiam Inc.
Today, Fortunoff continues operations as an online jewelry retailer alongside its network of Backyard Stores.
Ownership
Until November 2004, the company was wholly owned by the Fortunoff and Mayrock families—descendants of its founders—before selling a 75% interest to Trimaran Capital Partners and the Kier Group. Several family members retained roles within management. Though initially scheduled for December 2004, the transaction closed in July 2005.
In early 2009, CONSOR Intellectual Asset Management was engaged to market the Fortunoff brand, intellectual property, and associated assets. By July of that year, David Fortunoff along with family members repurchased these assets with the intention of relaunching the brand.
Relaunch
In September 2009, Fortunoff granted a license to Furniture Concepts, LLC to market outdoor furniture under the Fortunoff name and to revive the Backyard Store division. By 2018, Furniture Concepts was managing Fortunoff Backyard Stores throughout New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.
Esther Fortunoff initiated an online fine jewelry venture in 2010, which was followed by the opening of a physical retail location in 2014 near the site formerly occupied by the Mall at the Source.