Saks 5th Avenue to target high and low fashion

Saks 5th Avenue is to become more high-end and low-end. The company, since its buyout by Canadian group Hudson's Bay Co, hopes to attract more affluent shoppers by offering high-end luxury goods, like Hermès and Louis Vuitton. At the sime time the company will revamp its discount stores

to sell last season's merchandise to bargain hunters and thrifty shoppers.

Hudson’s CEO Richard Baker says he will try and persuade designers to let Saks offer more items from the top end of their clothing and accessories lines, for example Louis Vuitton handbags that sell for 48,000 dollars.

Discount

Saks to have bargain aesthetic

At the same time, the chain’s Saks’ Off 5th stores will be redesigned to have a more discount store aesthetic, where customers can rummage through piles of clothes and racks of shoes sorted by size rather than brand.

"Our outlet stores look too much like department stores," said Baker, who completed the 2.4 billion dollar acquisition of Saks in November. "Nordstrom Rack is a mess, and customers love it."

The two seemingly contradictory initiatives reflect the current shape of the US economy. The wealthy are doing well and are able to spend, but nearly everyone has been conditioned to shop only when bargains are at their deepest.

Much of Saks’ growth is being driven by its outlet business. Baker plans to more than double the number of Off 5th stores the company has in the US – currently 71 – and open twenty in Canada. Saks also has 41 Saks Fifth Avenue stores in the US and plans to add 7 in Canada.

Image: Saks 5th Ave