We have a confession: It’s been two years since we’ve set foot in Saks Fifth Avenue. It’s a little hard to admit since luxury shopping is our job. In our defense, we didn’t think there was anything that we were missing but we were wrong.
After a two-year hiatus, we were shocked by what we found. First, you have to see the new fifth floor. They call it “Advanced Designers” which could easily be mistaken for Anne Klien or Ellie Tahari but the more accurate description would be the “Avant-Garde Designers.” Shoppers can find a full selection of street wear labels, like Alchemist, Unraveled, and Off-White, along with more experimental designers like Rosie Assoulin, Delpozo, and Comme Des Garsons.
The best part is that it’s presale time and most clothing items are now 40% off. Handbags are reduced between 30% and 40% off and most shoes are reduced 30% to 40%. The sale officially begins Tuesday, May 22nd, which means the discounts will then be available online too. This season, presale favors Sake Fifth Avenue credit card holders. If you don’t have a Saks card, the full amount will be charged now and the price difference will be credited once the sale officially begins and items ship.
On the first floor, towards the escalators, is where you will find most of the sale bags. The biggest surprise was the selection of Loewe bags. A large Puzzle bag is $1710 from $2850 and the smaller size is $1470 from $2450. There are also plenty of Valentino white Rockstud Spike bags included in the markdown. Most of the selection is 30% off and a few older versions are discounted 40%. This “Belt Bag” comes to $1050 from $1500, a zip-around wallet in the same style is $577 from $825 and a the same style shoulder bag is $2240 from $3200. You can see pictures of most of the bags on sale at Saks Fifth Avenue using this link.
Upstairs, on the eighth floor the sale selection is already set up on racks. We wish Saks would stop treating the sale shoe section as if it were an outlet. Shoes were already strewn all over the floor and it’s hard to feel good about $1000 shoes when the store isn’t treating them much better than dropped french fries. On the bright side, the assortment of sale shoes rival Barneys. The discount is between 30% and 40% depending on the style.
Some of the highlights in the shoe department are the Roger Vivier slides with an oversized rhinestone buckle that come to $1250 from $875, Valentino Rockstud Spike pool slides are $507 from $725, and Manolo Hangisi satin flats are $668 from $995. Pictures of Saks’ sale shoes are just a click away. We also found assorted Gucci shoes thrown into the mix. These embroidered espadrilles are $378 from $630. We spotted these lace pumps discounted 40% and these fur lined Princetown loafers for $564 from $940. More of what’s on sale from Gucci is over this way.
Remember, the sale goes live online on Tuesday. We always suggest stocking your cart in advance. It’s faster to pull the trigger if you have already done your final edit. If you’re still questioning whether you should actually go the store, you can always see pictures of practically everything we saw over in the jump.
Handbags: Irina 212-940-2443
5th Floor “Advance” Clothing: Marjorie: 646-552-7292
