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Dive Brief:
Saks Global on Tuesday announced “a strategic realignment of our Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus Stores teams,” further consolidating its operations following the merger of the luxury department store companies late last year.
Store experience has been added to President and Chief Commercial Officer Emily Essner’s duties. They now encompass “all customer-facing functions for Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus,” which also include brand partnerships and buying, merchandise planning, marketing, digital, commercial analytics and customer insights.
Mary McGreevy, who two weeks ago took the role of regional vice president of stores, has been promoted to chief stores officer, reporting to Essner, Saks Global said by email. Larry Bruce, president of stores for Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus, is leaving after more than two decades at Saks and, before that, nearly a decade at Neiman Marcus.
Dive Insight:
Saks Global continues to streamline its operations, about a year after its takeover of Neiman Marcus Group was first announced. The $2.7 billion deal closed in December.
In an email Tuesday, a Saks Global spokesperson said the latest organizational shuffle “will allow us to move quickly as an integrated team to capture opportunities to maximize growth and better serve our customers and partners as [we] work to redefine luxury retail.”
So far 2025 has been bumpy for the luxury department store conglomerate. The company spent a few weeks scuffling with the city of Dallas over its plans to close the iconic Neiman Marcus downtown flagship; that location will now remain open at least through the holidays. There has also been a series of layoffs, in the winter and spring, after downsizing last year. Saks Fifth Avenue’s frayed relationships with vendors and some customers have alarmed some analysts, as have its looming debt payments.
This month, though, the company secured $350 million in financing. Since then Saks Global executives told BMO Capital Markets analysts that they smoothed things over with vendors and decided not to close stores.