Dawn Mello, former president of Bergdorf Goodman, died on Sunday morning at her home in New York. As president of Berdorf in the 1980s, Mello helped transform the department store from a carriage trade retailer into an emporium of the world’s most sought-after labels, introducing Americans to now-household names such as Michael Kors, Fendi and Armani.

In the late ’80s, Mello started a new chapter at Gucci; during a five-year tenure at the Italian label, she assisted in the rerelease of the iconic Gucci loafer. She returned back to her Bergdorf roots in 1994, opening a men’s store and expanding the home goods department.