RIP Beverly Hills: Startling video shows how once-thriving shopping mecca is now a desolate wasteland as high-end shops, banks, and restaurants shutter their doors amid economic woes and crime

A new video documenting the large and growing number of high-profile Beverly Hills stores that have closed in recent months and years puts renewed emphasis on the crisis facing the retail industry in most major cities.

The video, posted by an account called cody90210, shows some 11 popular Beverly Hills stores now completely closed, including the iconic former Barneys location, Brooks Brothers, All Saints and luxury womenswear boutique Escada. Both Escada and Barneys have filed for bankruptcy in recent years.

The closed stores, which include popular convenience stores like Rite Aid and Chipotle, and even the popular workout class SoulCycle, have closed their doors on Wilshire Boulevard, causing the area to lose some of its former appeal.

The reasons for the large number of closures are mixed: many brands are seeing a decline in demand for personal shopping experiences, while others are changing their business strategies following acquisitions by other brands. The deteriorating economy has also had a negative impact on most brands, but especially those that market luxury products.

While stores along Wilshire Boulevard were once popular spots for celebrities of the moment to have their photos captured and distributed by paparazzi, the relevance of that kind of media attention has diminished in the age of social media.

The Beverly Hills business community, and Los Angeles in general, is also experiencing a major crime spike, leaving many stores defenseless against gangs of robbers.

Last month, stunned bystanders witnessed the shocking moment a gang of at least 30 brazen thieves ransacked an Yves Saint Laurent store in a California luxury mall.

Videos posted online showed several people in dark clothing, hoods and masks running into the Americana at Brand store shortly before 5 p.m. Tuesday and then quickly exiting.

Glendale police said the thieves got away with about $300,000 in merchandise, after overwhelming staff and taking everything they could in less than a minute.

None of the thieves used weapons in the brutal scheme and there were no injuries.

An investigation is ongoing as California continues to experience an increasing number of significant robberies after officials reduced the penalty for theft of items worth less than $950.

Across California, brutal robberies have become more common as lawmakers continue to lower the penalty for such crimes.

The convicts could theoretically face up to six months in prison, but in most cases the police do not bother to press charges.

The California Senate also passed legislation in May that would prohibit California employees from facing active shooters or shoplifters.

Proponents of the protocol say it protects staff from violence, but stores and employees say the measure will only encourage shoplifting, which the evidence seems to confirm.

The Brooks Brothers in Beverly Hills closed for good as the brand continues to evaluate its failing business strategy

The old Niketown store in Beverly Hills in 2013

For the past fifteen years, the novelty of celebrity spotting at Beverly Hills malls has worn off. Here’s Dustin Hoffman photos in a Porsche after a stop at Barnet’s New York in Beverly Hills

More recently, a group of thieves stole $300,000 worth of luxury goods from a Nordstrom in the Westfield Topanga Mall near Calabasas.

The gang of more than 30 criminals dressed in black and covered their faces during a raid on the store in August.

Videos circulating online show the thieves looting luxury goods from brands such as Yves Saint Laurent, Burberry and Bottega Veneta.

LAPF Deputy Chief of Police Alan Hamilton said the robbery was likely the result of organized criminal planning.

“Some of it is gang members, some of it is people you could identify as professional shoplifters.

“It varies, and unfortunately there is a black market for the purchase of these items.

“The same people then turn around and commit these acts over and over again.

“Because of the way this type of crime usually works, they often already know where to load these goods.

“Those goods are very quickly separated from the people who were involved in the crime.

“They’re not going to leave it in one place for days or anything.”

This kind of brutal looting and resale of luxury goods became relatively common during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when luxury stores in cities where protests and riots were taking place were targeted.

The same Nordstrom store in Westfield Topanga was looted in November 2021 when robbers attacked a security guard with bear spray and stole designer bags

Los Angeles Police Protective League spokesman Tom Saggau said so Fox News digital that he believes the increase is due to a zero cash bail policy.

He told the newspaper: “The abolition of cash bail for these types of offenses is really an invitation to these types of people who are prone to break the law and do so in such a blatant way.”

The policy means that persons arrested and charged with a crime are subsequently released without having to post bail beforehand.