Content area
Full text
The History of Saks: A Picture of Luxury
-- VICKI M. YOUNG
Since its inception, Saks Fifth Avenue has undergone many changes in ownership, yet it's managed to retain an image that is synonymous with both luxury and fashion.
Andrew Saks founded the apparel retailer in 1867 and incorporated it as Saks & Co. in 1902, the same year he opened a Saks & Co. store on 34th Street. After he died, Saks merged with Gimbel Brothers Inc. in 1923 and was operated as a subsidiary of Gimbel. Horace Saks and Bernard Gimbel purchased the current flagship location on Fifth Avenue, which was then occupied jointly by the Democratic Club and the Buckingham Hotel, in what was largely a residential district. On Sept. 15, 1924, they opened Saks Fifth Avenue at the site.
The Saks Fifth Avenue...