Howard Socol, chairman, president and chief executive of Barneys New York, may not be sticking around for very long if the company is sold, The Post has learned.
Socol, 58, has told friends and at least one prospective bidder for Barneys that he doesn’t plan to stay beyond an initial transition period, no more than a year, sources said.
Socol, through a company spokeswoman, declined to comment on his future plans.
A person close to Socol cautioned that no definitive decisions have been made regarding his future employment, and that depending on the outcome of the auction process he could well decide to extend his contract beyond January 2005, when it expires.
But, this person continued, “Is Howard thinking of a shorter time line for full-time work? I would say he is.”
Barneys was put up for sale in June by its majority shareholders, Whippoorwill Associates and Bay Harbour Management, two private equity firms that rescued the retailer from bankruptcy protection in 1999.
Socol, who joined Barneys in 2001, has presided over a period of renewed growth and profitability for the retailer.
His continued management of the company is seen by many analysts as a crucial element to securing a deal, especially if the buyer turns out to be another financial firm.
Indeed, Socol’s unwillingness to make a long-term commitment to the company caused one private equity firm to withdraw from the bidding, a person familiar with the situation said.
“Howard has certain expectations of what his career will look like, and who he would want to work for,” said a person who has spoken to him.
Of course, a potential buyer with experience in retailing may choose to put its own management in place.
Designer Elie Tahari, for instance, is said to be looking at Barneys. A spokesman for Tahari said his interest is “more than notional,” but declined to specify whether he planned to bid for the company.
As part of his employment contract, Socol was granted unrestricted stock and options with a value of $9.8 million, based on Barneys’ closing stock price yesterday of $17.52.
Socol briefly went into retirement in 1997, after 28 years at Burdines, a division of Federated Department Stores, where he rose to become chairman and chief executive.
He was lured back to the boardroom with an offer to become CEO of J. Crew in 1998, a post he held for just under a year.
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Howard’s end
Barneys’ highly regarded CEO, Howard Socol, right, is signaling he may leave the upscale retailer after it is
sold, scaring off potential buyers. Socol’s successes:
* Continued turnaround begun by Allen Questrom
* Oversaw retailer’s return to profitability
* Expanded lower-priced co-op stores