The gateway to luxury :: Now Smell This

The largest unsecured creditor in the Saks Global bankruptcy is Chanel, which is owed $136 million — more than twice what the retailer owes its next biggest creditor. A Chanel spokesperson was not immediately available to comment. The amount caught many by surprise, though, given that the brand’s business with Saks Global was believed to be on a largely concession basis.

— Read more in A $900M Promise to Amazon and 4 Other Takeaways From the Saks Bankruptcy at Women’s Wear Daily.

Bloomingdale’s and Nordstrom, the two other luxury national retailers left standing, are sensing opportunity. Nordstrom has hired a number of Saks and Neiman employees, and Bloomingdale’s has been wooing luxury brands like Chanel, Chloé and Burberry and increasing their floor space.

— Read more in What Does the Saks Bankruptcy Mean for Shoppers? at The New York Times.

“The Saks bankruptcy isn’t really about luxury declining. It’s about the department store model overall struggling,” said Jenna Rennert, a contributing editor at Vogue. “Department stores really used to be the gateway to luxury,” she said. “Today, they’re kind of the middleman that luxury brands no longer need.”

— Read more in Why Saks collapsed while the rest of luxury retail is growing at NBC.