Saks Off 5th, a popular off-price retailer, is closing two of its stores on Long Island, along with dozens of other locations, as part of a strategic move by its parent company, Saks Global, to navigate through bankruptcy proceedings. The company plans to keep only 12 of its 74 Off 5th stores open, primarily selling residual inventory from the department stores rather than purchasing new merchandise for sale. The closures will affect the Tanger Outlets Deer Park and Tanger Outlets Riverhead locations on Long Island, as well as other stores across New York, Florida, New Jersey, California, Texas, and Georgia. Customers are advised to redeem gift cards by February 14, and returns and exchanges for items purchased before Saturday are accepted. Markdowns will begin at some closing stores on Saturday, while others will close on Monday. The website saksoff5th.com will also wind down operations, with sales starting on Friday. Saks Global's CEO, Geoffroy van Raemdonck, stated that the move will better position the company for long-term growth and value creation, realigning the business to better serve luxury customers and drive full-price sales across its core luxury brands. The announcement comes two weeks after Saks Global filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, missing a $100 million interest payment in December. The company has also seen recent leadership changes, with CEO Marc Metrick stepping down and his successor, Richard Baker, leaving the role less than two weeks later.
