The owner of luxury department stores in the US has replaced its CEO. The WSJ writes that it is on the verge of bankruptcy.

American luxury goods retailer Saks Global has announced a change in its CEO amid reports that the company is preparing for bankruptcy. Richard Baker, the company's executive chairman, will now take over as head of Saks Global from Mark Metric, who has worked for the company for almost 30 years.

Metric held a senior position at Saks for about 30 years and has led Saks Global since its inception in July 2024. According to the press release, he left the company to focus on "new projects." Saks Global did not provide any details.

Baker, in turn, has extensive experience in retail and real estate, Reuters notes. He is the owner of one of the largest real estate development companies in the US, National Realty & Development Corporation, and previously headed Retail Opportunity Investments Corp., which he transformed into a Nasdaq-listed real estate investment trust, CNBC notes.

The change in leadership at the American luxury goods retailer came a few days after The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing sources familiar with the situation, reported that Saks Global was preparing for bankruptcy after defaulting on more than $100 million in interest payments on debt related to its 2024 acquisition of the Neiman Marcus department store chain.

Saks Global was established in 2024 after its parent company, Saks Fifth Avenue, Hudson’s Bay Company, acquired Neiman Marcus for $2.65 billion. By combining two luxury retail chains, it sought to compete with other American retail chains and department stores, including Nordstrom and Macy’s. As a result of the deal, Saks Global became a larger player in the market, comprising Saks Fifth Avenue, its Saks Off 5th discount chain, and the Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman department store chains.

Since then, CNBC notes, the company has taken a number of steps to raise cash and strengthen its financial position, including selling its flagship Neiman Marcus store in Beverly Hills and restructuring Saks Global's debt in August 2025.

However, according to WSJ sources, this was not enough to overcome the difficulties: since taking on the debt burden in 2024, Saks has been experiencing problems, the newspaper notes, emphasizing that delays in payments to suppliers have led to a reduction in the range of goods and, as a result, a drop in sales. Saks is currently negotiating with creditors to finance the bankruptcy proceedings, according to the publication's sources. The WSJ notes that this could be the most high-profile department store bankruptcy since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Saks declined to comment on the matter.

Saks, Neiman Marcus, and Bergdorf Goodman are among the most famous luxury department stores in the United States. Founded more than a century ago, all three brands have played a leading role in the development of the luxury retail market in the United States, writes the WSJ.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor