"The real estate scion bought the Lord & Taylor department store chain in 2006 and then sold it in 2019 as a shell of its former itself-after which its new owner shut its brick-and-mortar stores the following year. Ditto the Hudson's Bay chain in Canada, which Baker bought in 2008, only to liquidate it last year, ending a 355-year run in business."
"Indeed most of the chains Baker has touched in the last two decades have failed-and reports over the weekend suggest the Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, and Bergdorf Goodman luxury department stores that he brought together in a 2024 deal that created Saks Global could be heading to bankruptcy court soon. (The company had been known as Hudson's Bay Company for years, but switched to Saks Global when Baker spun out Saks and bought its arch-rival Neiman.)"
"Over the weekend, Bloomberg reported that Saks Global, after missing a $100 million interest payment to bondholders that was due Dec. 30, was negotiating a $1 billion lifeline to stave off a Chapter 11 filing. (Last June, Saks Global restructured its debt to ease the burden but its business has continued to deteriorate, reporting in October a 13% year-over-year drop in revenue to $1.6 billion in the second quarter.)"
Richard Baker acquired multiple retail chains and assets over two decades, including Lord & Taylor in 2006, Hudson's Bay in 2008, and the online flash site Gilt Groupe, and launched Hudson's Bay stores in the Netherlands in 2017. Most of those ventures failed: Lord & Taylor was sold in 2019 as a shell and its stores closed; Hudson's Bay was liquidated after a 355‑year run; Gilt Groupe sold at a loss in 2018; Dutch stores closed two years after opening. In 2024 Baker combined Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, and Bergdorf Goodman into Saks Global. Saks Global missed a $100 million interest payment due Dec. 30, reported a 13% year‑over‑year revenue decline to $1.6 billion, and is negotiating a $1 billion lifeline while Baker becomes CEO after Marc Metrick's resignation.
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