Saks Global filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Wednesday, potentially leaving large chunks of valuable real estate empty. At stake are 173 retail stores that may be shuttered, according to analysis by TRD Data.
Saks Global, which on its website claims to own or control some 13 million square feet of gross leasable area, also owns Neiman Marcus, which it acquired for $2.7 billion in 2024, and outlet offshoots like Last Call. Saks Off 5th, one of these discount retailers, occupies about half of Saks Global’s stores, 77 out of 173. Most of those stores are in California and Florida, which have 12 a piece.
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In a press release announcing the bankruptcy, Saks did not indicate if it plans to close stores. The firm noted, however, that it was looking at its “operational footprint to invest resources where it has the greatest long-term potential.” In November, Saks said it was shutting down nine Saks Off 5th locations nationwide.
Florida has the most exposure to any Saks closings, as the state has 28 various Saks locations, or just over 16 percent of all of Saks’ stores. California follows close behind, with 27 outposts (under 16%).
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It hasn’t been a good decade for retail real estate, especially for department stores.
In 2018, Sears Holdings, which had once been the largest retailer in the U.S., filed for bankruptcy, which led to the closing of hundreds of stores across the country, leaving behind massive footprints to be filled. Even its 2.4 million-square-foot Chicago-area headquarters was sold in 2023 to Compass Datacenters, for $194 million.
Barneys New York was next on the chopping block, as the iconic Big Apple retailer filed for bankruptcy in 2019. And then the pandemic gave the fatal blow to a string of more department stores and smaller retailers alike: J.C. Penney, Neiman Marcus and Lord & Taylor.
Over the past couple of years, another slate of big-name retailers announced store closures. Macy’s has said it will close 150 locations by the end of 2026. And in New York City, national chain retailers continued to pare down their physical footprints in 2025, closing 112 storefronts.