It might be opening in a mall, but it’s definitely not a department store. That’s what Saks is saying about its new downtown location, which opened yesterday.
Saks’ New Brookfield Place outpost is smaller that a traditional department store, at 86,000 square feet (Saks Fifth Avenue is 650,000 square feet). The selection of products at the shop is also highly curated, with a focus on up-and-coming designers, according to the New York Post.
“It’s more boutique than department store, spread out by designer,” Marc Metrick, president of Saks Fifth Avenue, told the Post.
Collection at the downtown Saks will also rotate faster, with new designs rolling in frequently.
Owned by Hudson Bay Cos., Saks’ new downtown concept debuts amid a slump in department store sales. In its most recent quarter, Hudson Bay reported that comparable sales on a constant currency basis declined by 1.3 percent. [NYP] –Christopher Cameron