Saks Files Bankruptcy, Blames Invisible Spring Sandals and Lonely Salespeople
KEY POINTS
- •Saks Global filed for bankruptcy in Texas in January 2026, citing unpaid debts and missed payments.
- •The flagship Saks Fifth Avenue store was quiet, with very few customers and many sales associates occupying themselves on phones.
- •Shifts toward expensive handbags and fewer accessible beauty products signaled a retail strategy favoring ultra-wealthy shoppers.
On January 2026, Saks Global—parent of Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman, and Neiman Marcus—dramatically filed for bankruptcy in Texas after mishandling hundreds of millions in debt. Once the 'mothership' of luxury retail, Saks now features ghostly blacked-out windows marked 'Creative installation in progress,' which might actually be the cashier’s next new monthlong job. Inside, the infamous shoe department with its own ZIP code '10022-SHOE' had ZERO lines, except outside Honeybrains café—selling utilitarian fare, oddly the only hotspot among 10 floors. Sales associates spent more time trying lipstick shades or eyeing phones than selling $4k+ Balenciaga and Saint Laurent handbags—now main floor staples replacing accessible beauty brands, making Saks a playground for the richest 3% who spend over $10,000 annually. And despite markdowns up to 75%, bargain hunters were few and unimpressed, as store traffic kept nosediving, even suggesting maybe a Starbucks could boost appeal, if Saks dared to mix caffeine with couture.
Share the Story
Saks went from luxury shopping mothership to a ghost town with bored sales staff and a shoe department lonely enough to deserve its own ZIP code. Bankruptcy: the new black for once-iconic department stores.
Luxury shoppers now outnumbered by salespeople checking phones. When your $4k handbags can't tempt a visitor, it's time to ask: where’s the Starbucks?
Saks’ idea of ‘creative installation’ may just be their team's collective job hunt after bankruptcy. Pass the 75% off deals, we’ll pass on the luck.
Source: Businessinsider | Published: 1/14/2026 | Author: Madeline Berg
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