In a dramatic turn of events that has sent shockwaves through the world of high-end fashion, the luxury department store conglomerate Saks Global has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The filing, submitted late Tuesday in a U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Houston, Texas, represents one of the most significant retail collapses since the COVID-19 pandemic.
A Legacy Brand Confronts Financial Reality
The move casts a cloud of uncertainty over the future of American luxury retail, though the company has moved swiftly to assure customers and the market. Saks Global confirmed early Wednesday that its stores, including the iconic Saks Fifth Avenue and Bergdorf Goodman locations, will remain open for now. This assurance comes after the retailer finalized a critical $1.75 billion financing package and appointed a new chief executive to steer it through the restructuring process.
Geoffroy van Raemdonck, the former CEO of Neiman Marcus, will take the helm, replacing Richard Baker. Baker was the architect behind the acquisition strategy that ultimately burdened Saks Global with unsustainable debt. The company also appointed former Neiman Marcus executives Darcy Penick and Lana Todorovich to key leadership roles as chief commercial officer and chief of global brand partnerships, respectively.
In court documents, Saks Global estimated that both its assets and liabilities fall within a staggering range of $1 billion to $10 billion. The bankruptcy process is designed to give the storied retailer breathing room to negotiate a debt restructuring with its creditors or potentially find a new owner. If these efforts fail, the company could be forced to liquidate its assets and shutter permanently.
The Financing Lifeline and Mounting Debts
The newly secured financing deal is a complex lifeline. It includes an immediate cash infusion of $1 billion through a debtor-in-possession loan from an investor group reportedly led by Pentwater Capital Management and Bracebridge Capital. An additional $240 million would be available via an asset-backed loan from the company’s existing lenders.
Furthermore, Saks Global stated it will have access to another $500 million in financing from the investor group once it successfully exits bankruptcy protection, which is anticipated later this year. The company has asked the court for a 45-day extension, until March 13, 2026, to submit its detailed financial statements.
The bankruptcy filing revealed a long list of creditors, with several major luxury brands among the largest unsecured claimants. Chanel leads with an unsecured claim of approximately $136 million, followed by Gucci owner Kering at $60 million. LVMH, the world's biggest luxury conglomerate, is listed with a $26 million claim. In total, Saks Global estimates it has between 10,001 and 25,000 creditors.
The Path to Collapse: A Deal That Backfired
The roots of this crisis trace back to 2024, when Richard Baker masterminded the takeover of Neiman Marcus by Canada’s Hudson’s Bay Co., which had owned Saks since 2013. The U.S. luxury assets were later spun off to create Saks Global, uniting three legendary names in American high fashion. However, the $2.7 billion deal was built on a foundation of roughly $2 billion in debt, with equity from investors including Amazon and Salesforce.
This debt load became crippling as global luxury sales began to slow. Saks Global struggled throughout last year to pay its vendors, who responded by withholding inventory. The resulting thinly stocked shelves likely drove affluent shoppers to rivals like Bloomingdale’s, exacerbating the pressure. As Morningstar analyst David Swartz noted last month, "Rich people are still buying, just not so much at Saks."
In a desperate scramble for cash, Saks Global sold the real estate of the Neiman Marcus flagship store in Beverly Hills last month for an undisclosed sum and was exploring the sale of a minority stake in Bergdorf Goodman. The situation came to a head on December 30, when the company failed to make an interest payment of over $100 million to bondholders, setting the stage for this week's bankruptcy filing.
The future of a retail empire that has catered to the elite from Gary Cooper to Grace Kelly now hangs in the balance, a stark symbol of the shifting tides in luxury consumption and the perilous weight of corporate debt.
