The retailer will be moving into 120,000-sf of renovated and refurbished space currently occupied by Parisian, a specialty department store which is being shut down by its parent, Saks Inc.

Lord & Taylor's parent, St. Louis-based May Department Stores Co., is paying Saks Inc. about $310 million or roughly $34 million per store for five Parisian store locations in Tennessee; three in Louisiana; and the Orlando site.

The deal is expected to close in March, according to a prepared statement from Birmingham, AL-based Saks Inc. Saks will use the proceeds to reduce debt and buy back equity.

Lord & Taylor will be the sixth upper end retailer to test the turf in this Central Florida market of 1.2 million residents. Stiff competition from fashion-conscious shoppers is expected to come from Saks Fifth Avenue, a Florida Mall fixture since November 1996; and four other new players--Nordstrom, Bloomingdale's, Macy's and Neiman Marcus. All four are scheduled to open their doors in October 2002.

Nordstrom will be at the Florida Mall; Bloomingdale's Macy's and Neiman Marcus at the under-construction 1.2 million-sf Mall at Millenia, five miles from Florida Mall in Orlando's tourist-heavy corridor.

Lord & Taylor is also opening stores this fall in Tampa, Fl, 80 miles west of Orlando, and in West Palm Beach, 200 miles south of Orlando. The chain is renovating and expanding an existing store in Boca Raton, FL.

Saks previously announced it is closing another 80,000-sf Parisian store because of sagging sales in the suburban Oviedo Marketplace shopping center. A 100,000-sf Parisian at the West Oaks Mall in west Orlando is a rumored candidate for a further closing this year but Saks would not confirm that speculation.

Instant Insights /

Lord & Taylor Entering Area's Simmering Upscale Retail Race

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