6 events in Passaic County with a date

Saks global declares bankruptcy

Filing comes a year after its merger

By: Daniel Munoz
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey

..... The company that owns the iconic luxury retailer Saks fifth Avenue - which has a store at the American Dream mail in East Rutherford [NJ] - filed for bankruptcy in January 13. [2026]
..... Saks Globa's move comes a year after it brought out rival chain Neiman Marcus in a move that saddled Saks with $2 billion in debt.
..... Tuesday's [01/13/2026] move also comes as Saks struggles with "inflation, rising interest rates, tariff-related uncertainly that disrupted liquidity discussions with potential lenders, and the lingering decline in foot traffic driven boy post-COVID shifts in downtown occupancy and reduced in-person work near flagship stores," said court filings in the United States Bankruptcy court in Texas.
..... "The truth is that Saks Global put itself in a financially precarious potion that undermined the day-to-day operations of the business," Neil Saunders, a retail analyst and managing director of GlobaData, a market intelligence and analytics company, said in a email on January 14. [2026] " A lack of cash meant suppliers went unpaid."
..... Many shoppers don't use luxury department stores as much, said David Schwartz, an analyst at Morningstar, an investment research firm.
..... A lot of luxury shoppers buy directly from the brands themselves," Stewart said. "they don't need to go to a Neiman Marcus to buy a Louis Vuitton handbag. they'll just go to Louis Vuitton."
..... Saks will remain open for now, after ti obtained a $1.5 billion financing package and picked a new chief executive officer, Geoffroy van Raemdonck, who was previously CEO of Neiman Marcus,.
..... Richard Baker stepped down as Saks' chief executive officer on January 13, [2026] Tuesday's announcement said. Baker was the driving force behind Saks; takeover of Neiman Marucs, NBC reported. As Saks took on debt because of th merger, it struggled to pay vendors, who in turn withhold inventory form Saks, court documents show.
..... "It was a doomed merger from the start," Schwartz said.
..... This bankruptcy "will give Saks global some breathing space and a chance to restructure," Saunders said.
....."However, it is vital that debt levels are brought down and that the company has room to make the investments needed to make up for more than a year of neglect," he added.
..... court filings show that Saks had between $1 billion and $10 billion in assets, but also the same amount in debt. It has nearly 17,000 employees.
..... Its creditors - or parities to whom Saks owes money - include luxury brad Chanel, owed $136 million, and luxury brand Gucci owner Kering, owed nearly $60 million. In total, Saks has 10,001 to 25,000 creditors."
..... Saks' only New Jersey location is at the American Dream mall in East Rutherford, in the mall's luxury wing, known as The Avenue, which has retailers such as Gucci, Hermes and Balenciaga.
..... Schwartz, the Morningstar analyst, said locations like the one at American Dream - might fare well given the existing volumes of foot traffic.

Saks also owns Saks Off 5th

..... Saks Global owns a discount sister brand known as Saks Off 5th, which is in the following locations:
* Bridgewater. [NJ]
* East Hanover. [NJ]
* Shewsbury Plaza in Shrewbury. [NJ]
* The Mills at Jersey Gardens in Elizabeth. [NJ]
* The Outlets at Bergen Town Center in Paramus. [NJ]
..... "Suspect that a bunch of stores will close," Schwartz said. "It's probably going to be downsized."
..... Representatives for Saks did not immediately return emails about what locations might close as a result of the bankruptcy.

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