Saks commits to opening men's store in downtown Manhattan

Saks now intends to open three stores in downtown Manhattan. The 85,000-square-foot Brookfield place store is expected to open summer 2016. Saks will also open a 55,000-square-foot Off 5th location at One Liberty Plaza.

They have also announced their intention to open their sixth men's only store at Brookfield place. The 16,750-square-foot store at 250 Vesey Street will open in 2017. By then, Saks will have a better idea of the Brookfield place customer from their mainline store.

According to usfashionindustry.com, by 2019, men's wear is expected to contribute to 40 billion dollars in the global apparel market. In 2014, men's wear grew by 4.5 percent reaching 440 billion dollars in sales.

Saks made the decision to pull men's out of the new full-line store because they didn't feel it was positioned in the right way. They felt that the store didn't have enough square footage to do a men's department justice.

Saks' other five freestanding men's stores are in San Antonio, Tex.; Chevy Chase,Md.; Beverly Hills, Calif.; San Francisco, Calif., and Palm Beach, Fla.

The proposed Brookfield's men's store will focus on accessories and footwear, and will also feature made-to-measure and bespoke services.

Marc Metrick, president of Saks Fifth Avenue, told WWD "Building a freestanding Saks Fifth Avenue Men’s Store at the crossroads of the U.S. financial market and New York City’s burgeoning downtown fits perfectly with our vision to expand our leadership position in the luxury space."