{“title”:”Saks Fifth Avenue Collapses Under $2.5B Debt”,”body”:”At a Glance
– Saks Global Holdings filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Wednesday after piling up $2.5 billion in debt from its 2024 Neiman Marcus purchase.
– Amazon, which invested $475 million in the deal, called its stake now “presumptively worthless.”
– The 159-year-old Saks Fifth Avenue chain says stores will stay open while it restructures with $1.75 billion in new financing.
– Why it matters: The bankruptcy signals deeper trouble for department stores as luxury brands bypass malls for direct-to-consumer sales.
Saks Global Holdings, owner of Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman, sought bankruptcy protection just eight weeks after staging a glittery holiday lights comeback at its Manhattan flagship. The filing caps a swift reversal for a company that loaded up on debt to buy a rival in 2024.
The Chapter 11 petition lands $2.5 billion in liabilities on the balance sheet, the direct result of the leveraged buyout of Neiman Marcus. Amazon, which supplied $475 million toward the acquisition, filed an objection and declared its equity now “presumptively worthless.”
## Holiday Lights to Court Lights
November’s star-studded unveiling of Saks’ diamond-themed holiday display-complete with Radio City Rockettes-felt like a turnaround moment. The prior year the retailer had canceled the light show to save money, so the revival seemed to signal better days.
Instead, the spectacle now reads like a final bow before the courts. Caleb R. Anderson reported that the parent company quietly began missing vendor payments within weeks of the celebration.
## A Mountain of Debt
Saks Global took on the record-breaking borrowings to acquire Neiman Marcus in a deal that closed in 2024. The transaction nearly doubled the corporate debt load overnight, according to News Of Fort Worth‘s review of court filings.
