The new year has brought little relief for retailers still reeling from last year's volatility. As 2026 unfolds, warning signs are surfacing again—most visibly in the collapse of Saks Global, the parent company of Saks Fifth Avenue, which filed for bankruptcy last month.
Saks Global owns some of the most recognizable names in luxury retail—Saks Fifth Avenue, Saks OFF 5TH, Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman—together operating roughly 125 stores across 13 million square feet. Its portfolio includes marquee sites on Manhattan's Fifth Avenue, Beverly Hills' golden shopping corridors and luxury destinations such as Bal Harbour Shops in Florida.
The company's troubles trace back to its $2.65 billion acquisition of Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman. According to Fortune, Executive Chairman and CEO Richard Baker has a mixed record when it comes to retail deals, having seen both wins and costly missteps, from Lord & Taylor to the Hudson's Bay Company and now Saks Global.
The consequences of the bankruptcy stretch far beyond corporate finances. In a court filing, Mark Weinsten, Saks Global's chief restructuring officer and managing director at turnaround firm BRG, warned that the retailer's survival—and that of its suppliers—depends on preserving relationships with "critical vendors."
Those vendors, he said, also rely heavily on Saks' stores and online platforms as key channels to reach customers. "A breakdown in the Global Debtors' relationships with these Critical Vendors would also destabilize the vendors themselves," Weinsten wrote.
That warning echoes across the luxury sector. "A Joann vendor has Michaels, has Walmart, has a lot of other options," Fitch Ratings Senior Director David Silverman told Retail Dive.
"There is Nordstrom, there's Bloomingdale's, there's some higher-end Macy's or Dillard's, but Saks and Neiman's have historically been very important for those vendors."
Landlords face their own uncertainty. Saks Global has long served as an anchor for luxury malls, spaces that are not easily filled if the stores shutter. While 2024 and 2025 saw other retailers quickly take over vacated spaces across midmarket shopping centers, owners of high-end properties may find few replacements that match Saks' prestige.
The bankruptcy also fits into a larger pattern of persistent distress.
"The defaults in the retail sector remain elevated, and our list of at-risk retailers is as long today as it was last year," Raya Sokolyanska, a vice president and senior credit officer at Moody's Ratings, told Retail Dive.
Data from Fitch Ratings, Moody's Ratings and S&P Global Ratings show several other retailers on watch lists, including J. Crew Group, Torrid, Guitar Center, QVC Group, Rugs USA and off-price chain Gabe's. The message is clear: even as the economy stabilizes, much of the retail sector—especially its luxury tier—remains on a fragile footing.
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