Cecille Villacorta, the former Saks Fifth Avenue employee who recently went on trial for her actions while employed by the company, was sentenced to three months in jail. She was also fined nearly $100,000 and told to complete 100 hours of community service.
In March, Villacorta was convicted on more than 140 felonies. While acting as a Saks Fifth Avenue saleswoman, she allegedly gave illegal discounts and also gave unauthorized refunds. Lawyers claimed that her practices caused Saks First Avenue nearly $1.5 million in losses.
Most of the money Villacorta made was between the years of 2000 and 2006 and came in …read more

In the wake of surprisingly high first-quarter losses, Saks Inc. plans to drastically reduce its overhead costs through a variety of measures. Among these, the department store giant plans to cut staff salaries, adjust their merchandise to each individual region’s tastes, and incorporate lower-priced merchandise throughout its stores.
Although Saks has traditionally strived to maintain its status as a luxury retailer, the state of the economy has made it necessary for the company to diversify its merchandise so that a wider group of shoppers can afford their wares. Unfortunately for Saks, walking the tightrope between luxury and affordability has been less …read more

Though discount stores and retailers such as Wal-Mart are maintaining or increasing revenues in the rough economic climate, luxury department stores aren’t doing as well. As expected, most of the major high-end stores are seeing their sales decline much faster than other parts of the retail sector.
On Thursday, Nordstrom and Saks both reported that losses accelerated in February. The International Council of Shopping Centers had projected that luxury retailers would see an 8 percent loss this year, but they have now revise their forecast to 15 percent.
With many people are the country struggling to make their mortgage payments, it’s not …read more