Saks, Inc. (originally Proffitt's, Inc.) was an American
holding company
A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
founded in 1919. Before acquisition by the Canadian-founded
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...
in 2013, it held ownership of department store chains including
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
-based
Saks Fifth Avenue
Saks Fifth Avenue (originally Saks & Company; Colloquialism, colloquially Saks) is an American Luxury goods, luxury department store chain headquartered in New York City and founded by Andrew Saks. The original store opened in the F Street and ...
(1998–2013) and
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
-based
Proffitt's
Proffitt's was a department store chain based in Alcoa, Tennessee. On March 8, 2006, the Proffitt's and McRae's stores were converted into Belk stores. Belk acquired the two chains in July 2005 from Saks, Inc.
History
Beginnings
Jeweler D ...
(1919–2005). It acquired several mid-range department store chains in the 1990s, however, refocused on upscale retailing and divested of them in the mid-2000s.
HBC maintains the Saks Fifth Avenue nameplate through the full-line department stores,
Saks Off 5th Saks can refer to:
*Saks (surname)
*Saks, Alabama, a community in the United States
*Saks, Inc., holding company of Saks Fifth Avenue
*Saks Fifth Avenue, U.S. luxury department store
See also
*
*
*Sachs
*Sachse (disambiguation)
*Sacks (surname)
*Sa ...
off-price stores, and
SaksWorks
SaksWorks is an American coworking space provider and sister brand to the Saks Fifth Avenue department store chain, both of which are based in New York City and owned by Hudson's Bay Company (HBC). The concept was conceived amid the COVID-19 pan ...
coworking space provider.
Operations during 20th century
Proffitt's Inc. began as five
Proffitt's
Proffitt's was a department store chain based in Alcoa, Tennessee. On March 8, 2006, the Proffitt's and McRae's stores were converted into Belk stores. Belk acquired the two chains in July 2005 from Saks, Inc.
History
Beginnings
Jeweler D ...
stores in the
Knoxville, Tennessee
Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Tennessee, Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Di ...
, metropolitan area. After going public under the symbol PRFT on the
NASDAQ
The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...
stock exchange in 1987, Proffitt's Inc. grew by acquiring several department stores. In 1989 the company purchased 18
Hess's
Hess's was a department store chain based in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The company started in 1897 with one store, originally known as Hess Brothers, and grew to nearly 80 stores by its peak in the late 1980s. The chain's stores were closed or sol ...
locations in Tennessee, Virginia, Kentucky, and Georgia. From 1994 to 1998, the company added
McRae's
McRae's was a mid-range regional department store chain founded and based in Jackson, Mississippi, with locations in Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, and Florida. The nameplate was in existence for more than a century.
History
Samuel P. McRae fo ...
,
Younkers
Younkers Inc. is an American online retailer and former department store chain founded as a family-run dry goods business in 1856 in Keokuk, Iowa. The retailer had evolved over more than 150 years to include a presence in locations throughout Iowa ...
,
Parisian,
Herberger's
G. R. Herberger Inc. is a department store chain founded in 1927 with locations throughout the Midwestern United States. The chain was sold in the late 1990s amid growing consolidation in the department store industry, while continuing to operate ...
,
Carson Pirie Scott
Carson Pirie Scott & Co. (also known as Carson's) is an American department store that was founded in 1854, which grew to over 50 locations, primarily in the Midwestern United States. Sold to the holding company of Bon-Ton in 2006, but still op ...
, the Wisconsin-based
Boston Store chain, and
Bergner's
P.A. Bergner & Co. (also known as Bergner's) was an upscale Midwestern department store established in 1889. The chain is now an online retailer operated by BrandX.com, Inc. The flagship store was located in Peoria, Illinois at The Shoppes at Gr ...
chains, as well as additional stores from
Loveman's,
Parks-Belk
Belk, Inc. is an American department store chain founded in 1888 by William Henry Belk in Monroe, North Carolina, with nearly 300 locations in 16 states. Belk stores and Belk.com offer apparel, shoes, accessories, cosmetics, home furnishings, ...
, and
Brody's
Brody Brothers Dry Goods Company, Inc., more commonly referred to as Brody's, was an upscale fashion merchandise chain formerly headquartered in Greenville, North Carolina, with branch stores located in eastern North Carolina. The Brody family re ...
, which were converted into existing store nameplates. After acquiring Parisian, Proffitt's relocated its corporate headquarters to
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...
, from Knoxville in October 1997. Although the full Saks company no longer has a store in Mississippi, Saks operates its data services from the former
McRae's
McRae's was a mid-range regional department store chain founded and based in Jackson, Mississippi, with locations in Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, and Florida. The nameplate was in existence for more than a century.
History
Samuel P. McRae fo ...
headquarters in
Jackson, Mississippi
Jackson, officially the City of Jackson, is the Capital city, capital of and the List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city is also one of two county seats of Hinds County, Mississippi, ...
.
1998 acquisition of Saks Holdings
In September 1998, the company acquired the holding company for the luxury retailer
Saks Fifth Avenue
Saks Fifth Avenue (originally Saks & Company; Colloquialism, colloquially Saks) is an American Luxury goods, luxury department store chain headquartered in New York City and founded by Andrew Saks. The original store opened in the F Street and ...
, Saks Holdings, Inc., and subsequently changed its legal name to Saks, Incorporated. The acquisition brought the
Saks Fifth Avenue
Saks Fifth Avenue (originally Saks & Company; Colloquialism, colloquially Saks) is an American Luxury goods, luxury department store chain headquartered in New York City and founded by Andrew Saks. The original store opened in the F Street and ...
and
Off 5th franchises, as well as Folio, a mail-order business and Saks.com, an online retailer.
The former Saks Fifth Avenue properties became the Saks Fifth Avenue Enterprises division of the company with the larger Birmingham-based department store division becoming the Saks Department Store Group. The company's main-line department store group was made up of its Southern Department Store Group:
McRae's
McRae's was a mid-range regional department store chain founded and based in Jackson, Mississippi, with locations in Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, and Florida. The nameplate was in existence for more than a century.
History
Samuel P. McRae fo ...
and
Proffitt's
Proffitt's was a department store chain based in Alcoa, Tennessee. On March 8, 2006, the Proffitt's and McRae's stores were converted into Belk stores. Belk acquired the two chains in July 2005 from Saks, Inc.
History
Beginnings
Jeweler D ...
, the Northern Department Store Group:
Bergner's
P.A. Bergner & Co. (also known as Bergner's) was an upscale Midwestern department store established in 1889. The chain is now an online retailer operated by BrandX.com, Inc. The flagship store was located in Peoria, Illinois at The Shoppes at Gr ...
,
Boston Store,
Carson Pirie Scott
Carson Pirie Scott & Co. (also known as Carson's) is an American department store that was founded in 1854, which grew to over 50 locations, primarily in the Midwestern United States. Sold to the holding company of Bon-Ton in 2006, but still op ...
,
Herberger's
G. R. Herberger Inc. is a department store chain founded in 1927 with locations throughout the Midwestern United States. The chain was sold in the late 1990s amid growing consolidation in the department store industry, while continuing to operate ...
and
Younkers
Younkers Inc. is an American online retailer and former department store chain founded as a family-run dry goods business in 1856 in Keokuk, Iowa. The retailer had evolved over more than 150 years to include a presence in locations throughout Iowa ...
, the company's Specialty Department Store Group
Parisian, and the company's Saks Fifth Avenue Enterprises which included
Saks Fifth Avenue
Saks Fifth Avenue (originally Saks & Company; Colloquialism, colloquially Saks) is an American Luxury goods, luxury department store chain headquartered in New York City and founded by Andrew Saks. The original store opened in the F Street and ...
and
Off 5th.
Operations during 21st century
In 2001, the company recorded record revenues of $6.6 billion, making it a member of the
Fortune 500
The ''Fortune'' 500 is an annual list compiled and published by ''Fortune'' magazine that ranks 500 of the largest United States corporations by total revenue for their respective fiscal years. The list includes publicly held companies, along ...
and one of the largest operators of department stores in the United States. The company was also a primary sponsor of the Bruno's Memorial Classic golf tournament, now known as the
Regions Charity Classic
The Regions Charity Classic, formerly known as the Bruno's Memorial Classic, was an American golf tournament on the Champions Tour. It was originally held at Greystone Golf & Country Club and moved to Ross Bridge Golf Resort and Spa, one of ten ...
. The company moved its headquarters to
Midtown Manhattan
Midtown Manhattan is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan and serves as the city's primary central business district. Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Buildin ...
, New York City in 2007.
In 2005, vendors filed against Saks alleging unlawful
chargeback
A chargeback is a return of money to a payer of a transaction, especially a credit card transaction. Most commonly the payer is a consumer. The chargeback reverses a money transfer from the consumer's bank account, line of credit, or credit ...
s. The
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash of 1929. The primary purpose of the SEC is to enforce the law against market ...
(SEC) investigated the complaint for years, and according to the New York Times "exposed a tangle of illicit tactics that let Saks ... keep money it owed to clothing makers", inflating Saks' yearly earnings up to 43% and abusively collecting around $30 million from suppliers over seven years.
Saks settled with the SEC in 2007, after firing three or more executives involved in the fraudulent activities.
In March, 2005, Saks announced to restate financial results from fiscal 1999 through the third quarter of fiscal 2004 to correct some accounting errors related to its previously recorded operating leases.
By 2005, Saks Incorporated began to seek a narrower focus towards the luxury-oriented retail synonymous with its Saks Fifth Avenue stores. The decision resulted in a July 2005 sale of its combined 47
Proffitt's
Proffitt's was a department store chain based in Alcoa, Tennessee. On March 8, 2006, the Proffitt's and McRae's stores were converted into Belk stores. Belk acquired the two chains in July 2005 from Saks, Inc.
History
Beginnings
Jeweler D ...
and
McRae's
McRae's was a mid-range regional department store chain founded and based in Jackson, Mississippi, with locations in Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, and Florida. The nameplate was in existence for more than a century.
History
Samuel P. McRae fo ...
stores to
Belk
Belk, Inc. is an American department store chain founded in 1888 by William Henry Belk in Monroe, North Carolina, with nearly 300 locations in 16 states. Belk stores and Belk.com offer apparel, shoes, accessories, cosmetics, home furnishings, a ...
for approximately $622 million.
On October 31 that same year, Saks announced that it was selling the 142 stores within its Northern Department Store Group, including Carson Pirie Scott, Bergner's, Younkers, Herberger's, and Boston Store to
Bon-Ton
Bon-Ton Holdings Inc. is an American online retailer and former department store chain founded in 1898. After rapid expansion in the 1990s and early 2000s, the original company had financial troubles, ultimately filing for bankruptcy in 2018 ...
Stores, Inc., for $1.1 billion; the transaction was complete as of March 6, 2006.
On August 2, 2006, Saks Incorporated announced that it had agreed to sell its upscale 38 Parisian stores, along with two regional distribution centers and Birmingham corporate headquarters to
Belk
Belk, Inc. is an American department store chain founded in 1888 by William Henry Belk in Monroe, North Carolina, with nearly 300 locations in 16 states. Belk stores and Belk.com offer apparel, shoes, accessories, cosmetics, home furnishings, a ...
, which rebranded them under their own name in the third quarter of 2007.
On November 5, 2008, Saks announced the closure of the unprofitable
Club Libby Lu
Club Libby Lu was an experiential/experience-based retailer for young girls ages 4 to 12. Founded by Mary Drolet, a former executive at Claire's and Montgomery Ward, in August 2000, the store chain employed 98 stores in 28 states in the United Sta ...
chain.
2013 acquisition by Hudson's Bay Company
On July 29, 2013,
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
-based
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...
announced that it will buy Saks, Inc. for US$2.4 billion.
Through this ownership, Saks Fifth Avenue and Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th became affiliated with
Hudson's Bay,
Home Outfitters
Home Outfitters (known as Déco Découverte in Quebec; originally called Bed, Bath & More) was a Canadian retail home decor chain, owned by Hudson's Bay Company, that sold bedding, towel
A towel is a piece of absorbent cloth or paper used for d ...
, and
Lord & Taylor
Lord & Taylor was the oldest brick and mortar department store in the United States, in business from 1826 to 2020. The brand was purchased during former owner Le Tote's 2020 liquidation bankruptcy and relaunched by new owner, Saadia Group, as ...
.
List of department stores
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
American companies established in 1919
Companies based in New York City
Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange
Holding companies established in 1919
Holding companies of the United States
Hudson's Bay Company
Retail companies established in 1919
Saks Fifth Avenue
1919 establishments in Alabama
2013 mergers and acquisitions