Saks Global shutters 57 OFF 5TH locations and all Last Call stores in major restructuring
Luxury retailer dramatically scales back discount operations amid bankruptcy proceedings
The bargain hunter’s paradise of designer deals is rapidly shrinking. Saks Global announced it’s closing the vast majority of its Saks OFF 5TH discount stores — 57 locations in total — along with all five remaining Neiman Marcus Last Call outlets, leaving just 12 OFF 5TH stores standing when the dust settles.
The dramatic scaling back comes as part of the company’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring, which it filed in mid-January after missing a $100 million interest payment. The company has secured $1.75 billion in financing to navigate the restructuring process.
“As we advance on Saks Global’s transformation, we are taking decisive steps to realign our business to better serve our luxury customers and drive full-price selling across our core luxury businesses,” Geoffroy van Raemdonck, Saks Global’s chief executive officer, explained in a statement.
The closures are happening fast. Twenty-three Saks OFF 5TH locations ceased operations on Monday, February 2, while another 34 stores held closing sales over the weekend. For online shoppers, the news isn’t any better — saksoff5th.com has begun winding down operations with a closing sale that launched on Friday, January 30.
Which stores survive the chopping block?
Only a dozen OFF 5TH locations will remain open, strategically positioned across six states: New York, Florida, New Jersey, Georgia, California, and Texas. In New Jersey specifically, four of the five existing locations are shuttering, with only the Bergen Town Center store in Paramus surviving the cuts. The restructuring will cost jobs too — Saks Global plans to lay off 69 workers across New Jersey alone by May 4.
What’s behind this massive contraction? The luxury retailer’s financial troubles can be traced back to its $2.7 billion acquisition of Neiman Marcus, which saddled the company with significant debt. The remaining OFF 5TH stores will operate under a new model, selling residual inventory from Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, and Bergdorf Goodman without making direct merchandise purchases of their own.
The move represents a fundamental shift in strategy. Rather than maintaining a robust discount division, Saks Global appears to be refocusing on its full-price luxury business, using the remaining OFF 5TH locations primarily as clearance outlets for its premium brands.
For consumers who’ve relied on these discount retailers for affordable access to designer labels, the options are quickly dwindling. The closures of 57 Saks OFF 5TH and five Last Call stores mark one of the largest contractions in the luxury off-price sector in recent memory.
As luxury retailers continue navigating post-pandemic challenges and shifting consumer preferences, Saks Global’s dramatic pullback from the discount market may signal a broader industry recalibration — one that prioritizes exclusivity and full-price sales over the volume-driven approach that defined retail expansion strategies in previous decades.
