When Saks Global announced in early March that it would shutter 15 more department stores — 12 Saks Fifth Avenue locations and three Neiman Marcus stores — as part of its Chapter 11 restructuring, it felt like the next inevitable chapter in the long decline of American luxury retail. Twenty-four stores marked for closure by spring. A shrinking footprint. The usual story.
Then, last week, Saks Global did something unusual: it changed its mind.
The company announced that three stores previously slated for closure would remain open — the Saks Fifth Avenue locations in Sarasota, Florida, and Palm Desert, California, and the Neiman Marcus store in White Plains, New York. A company spokeswoman cited "productive conversations with our landlords and further evaluation" as the reason for the reversal.
Follow the Landlord
All three saved stores sit in malls owned by Simon Property Group, the nation's largest mall operator and a company with both the leverage and the incentive to keep luxury anchors in place. The Sarasota store is at The Mall at University Town Center; Palm Desert is at The Gardens on El Paseo; White Plains is at The Westchester. CoStar reported that the negotiations involved rent restructuring — a signal that Simon was willing to absorb lower returns to avoid the vacancy damage of losing a luxury anchor.
That's the real story here. In the current retail real estate environment, a Saks or Neiman anchor departure doesn't just create an empty box — it depresses foot traffic across the entire property, triggers co-tenancy clauses that let other tenants renegotiate or leave, and signals to consumers that the mall is in decline. For Simon, keeping these stores open at reduced rent is a strategic investment in property value, not charity.
What's Left Standing
Even with the three reprieves, the numbers are sobering. According to Retail Dive, Saks Global's restructured portfolio will consist of roughly 15 Saks Fifth Avenue stores — including its Manhattan flagship — 33 Neiman Marcus locations, and Bergdorf Goodman. That's a dramatic contraction from the combined pre-merger footprint.
The closures that are proceeding remain painful. Liquidation sales began March 13 at the affected locations, with stores expected to close by late May. High-profile casualties include the Saks store on Chicago's Magnificent Mile and locations in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and San Antonio, Texas.
Some industry observers believe more stores could be pulled off the closure list if other landlords follow Simon's lead and come to the table with meaningful rent concessions. The precedent is now set.
The Bigger Picture
The Saks Global saga is becoming a case study in how bankruptcy reshapes the relationship between retailers and landlords. In past cycles, bankrupt retailers had minimal leverage — landlords held firm on rents and let weak tenants die. But in a market where mall vacancy rates remain elevated and luxury anchor replacements are nearly impossible to find, the power dynamic has shifted. Landlords are now co-investors in their tenants' survival.
For the luxury segment specifically, the question isn't whether there's demand for high-end department stores — there is, particularly in affluent markets like Sarasota and Palm Desert. The question is whether the Saks-Neiman merger, burdened by $2 billion in acquisition debt, can right-size its cost structure fast enough to serve that demand profitably.
Three stores don't change the trajectory. But they do reveal who's actually making the decisions in American luxury retail right now — and it's not the retailers.