As expected, Saks filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a Texas court on Wednesday morning. Hours later, the company’s new C.E.O., Geoffroy van Raemdonck, sent an email to vendors not unlike the one he sent as C.E.O. of Neiman Marcus Group when that company filed in 2020. Essentially, the ever-polite van Raemdonck explained that Saks Global would now enter a restructuring phase in which each business unit—Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus, Saks Off 5th, Last Call, and Horchow—would continue operating. Vendors would be paid going forward for any bills due after January 13, 2026—the so-called “post-petition obligations.”

As for the $711.5 million owed to the company’s top 30 creditors? Many of them will now join committees that lobby for preferential repayment. The hope is that they’ll garner 70-80 cents on the dollar, but the likelihood of receiving those funds depends on the success of the restructuring—and the leverage of the partner.

Chanel, owed $136 million, is the top creditor. Kering (Gucci, Bottega Veneta, Saint Laurent) is owed nearly $60 million. Third place goes to Andrew Rosen, who owns TWP, Alice + Olivia, etcetera, and is owed $41 million in all. Next are Capri ($33 million), Valentino owner Mayhoola ($33 million), PwC ($31 million), Richemont ($30 million), the Zegna Group ($26 million), LVMH ($26 million), and Akris ($23 million). Other companies owed more than $20 million include Brunello Cucinelli, Christian Louboutin, and La Prairie owner Beiersdorf. Estée Lauder is owed $16 million.

A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR

Inspired by the relaxed elegance and spirit of Portofino, MALO has quietly perfected the art of Italian knitwear since 1972—elevating cashmere with design and soul. Our independent Tuscan house reemerges with renewed purpose: refined, enduring, and crafted with intention. Made in Italy, offering luxury without noise, only softness, simplicity, and beauty.

Feeling over trend, MALO is sublime comfort for modern lives.

MALO. Worn by the wind. Kissed by the sun.

When you see those figures, it’s clear why a Chapter 11 filing was nearly inevitable for Saks Global. And while those sums of money may seem shocking, it’s important to remember that the debts are relative to the size of the business in most cases. There are many small brands owed between $1 million and $10 million that won’t see any money returned and may close. As one insider suggested to me with some tough love, “They are financing their own decline by allowing millions of dollars in receivables.”

Right now, businesses are weighing whether to ship spring product to Saks Global stores and whether they should accept orders for the fall season. In his note to vendors, van Raemdonck hinted that there will be something of a recalibration of the store fleet. I suspect order size will change for fall, especially as the company determines which stores will close. Insiders have criticized van Raemdonck for not shuttering enough doors during the NMG Chapter 11 restructuring, and buying too much inventory.

Brands can find (mostly cold) comfort in knowing that the team working through this is made up of familiar faces. As I reported first, van Raemdonck regulars Darcy Penick and Lana Todorovich are back as Saks Global president and chief of global brand partnerships, respectively. Chief buying officer Paolo Riva is sticking around, as is Bergdorf Goodman president Tracy Margolies. (Everyone is relieved for Tracy.) Someone asked me if there will be lots of layoffs now. I’m not sure; corporate is pretty thin at this point, anyway. I suspect the store closures will happen first, which will result in plenty of retail layoffs, and then a corporate recalibration.

I still believe there’s a world in which Bergdorf Goodman gets carved out of this mess, and some prime real estate is sold. And there are plenty of other, less-explored scenarios. As van Raemdonck meets with vendors, he needs to remember that he must make these stores a place people want to be while creating a business model that is actually sustainable. And with so much financing, they have some time to figure it out. More soon.

And now, here’s Rachel…

Of all the makeup brands that have explored sales in the past few years––Rare Beauty, Glossier, Kosas, Summer Fridays, etcetera––Makeup by Mario has almost universally been considered the market maker. The brainchild of Mario Dedivanovic, Kim Kardashian’s longtime makeup artist, the company should have been a slam-dunk acquisition by now. Since launching in late 2020, the line has solidified its place as one of Sephora’s bestselling makeup brands, consistently generating hero products and cultivating a loyal customer base. It has long been considered a unicorn in waiting, coveted by all the usual suspects.

A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR

Inspired by the relaxed elegance and spirit of Portofino, MALO has quietly perfected the art of Italian knitwear since 1972—elevating cashmere with design and soul. Our independent Tuscan house reemerges with renewed purpose: refined, enduring, and crafted with intention. Made in Italy, offering luxury without noise, only softness, simplicity, and beauty.

Feeling over trend, MALO is sublime comfort for modern lives.

MALO. Worn by the wind. Kissed by the sun.

In 2024, there were rumors that two of the biggest beauty conglomerates—L’Oréal and Shiseido—were courting Dedivanovic. As recently as several months ago, there was chatter that a certain P.E. shop, with ties to the largest luxury conglomerate in the world, was very interested in a potential deal. Meanwhile, I’m told that 2025 revenue was around $250 million, a nearly 30 percent increase from the previous year, which is impressive for a brand of its size.

And yet… there’s been no deal. Perhaps its rumored $1 billion price tag was disconnected from reality, given its key man reliance on Dedivanovic, and the fact that it doesn’t really exist outside of the Sephora universe. “The way you sell a beauty company has fundamentally changed,” one high-level beauty executive with ample M&A experience told me. Acquisitions, this person added, are no longer “a purely financial equation.” These days, a target brand needs to solve a real problem for its potential new owner, as Medik8 did for L’Oréal, or Rhode did for E.l.f. I’ve also heard that its recent foundation launch was lackluster—a problem made more acute by the fact that it was supposed to replace a first foundation that never lived up to expectations. (A spokesperson for the brand disputed this and said that the product is a top 10 foundation at Sephora.)

Until the company tries to sell again—likely in 2027—I’m hearing the corporate philosophy is to stay “heads down,” while acknowledging that anything can happen. In the meantime, the brand is undergoing its first real executive leadership change. Alicia Valencia, the longtime global president who helped start the company with Dedivanovic, has officially announced her departure. I’m told the board and investors are actively searching for her replacement—a big job at a brand still looking for a buyer in an unpredictable beauty M&A landscape. The shake-up is probably a good thing, though, given that the company has reached an inflection point and may be better served by a highly equitized scale-up–style executive who can oversee the next phase. Nevertheless, their investors are increasingly frustrated with postponed timelines.

I’ve heard that market feedback has consistently focused on Makeup by Mario’s overreliance on Sephora—which, as I’ve noted before, is a catch-22. The LVMH-owned retailer throws its weight behind brands with exclusive deals, elevating their profile, but then tends to deprioritize those who make the leap to Ulta. (A brand’s Sephora business can drop anywhere from 20 to 40 percent once it expands to Ulta.) In any case, Makeup by Mario’s Sephora-only days seem numbered: Its exclusivity agreement expires at the end of this year, although a jump to Ulta seems unlikely.

When retail expansion inevitably comes, the focus will likely be on retailers outside of North America, where there’s still ample room for growth. Indeed, I’ve heard around 30 percent of the brand’s business last year came from international markets, including Europe and the Middle East. However, someone familiar with Sephora’s business suggested that Makeup by Mario has “less growth levers to pull,” simply because it matured so quickly on its own—which usually is the whole point of selling to a strategic. “They’ve opened so many countries, and they don’t have new categories to launch, and there are a lot of SKUs,” this person told me. That said, the company could really benefit from the infrastructure and R&D capabilities of a new parentco with global reach and deep pockets, especially as it gears up for further global expansion.

Meanwhile, in an ambitious attempt to diversify its business, the brand launched on TikTok Shop at the end of last year. This, of course, is a big no-no, since Sephora reportedly “bans” certain brands from selling on the platform, which has become one of the retailer’s biggest competitors. The situation apparently got a little dicey, according to a person with knowledge of TikTok Shop’s business. (A Makeup by Mario spokesperson denied this.)

But I’ve heard both parties have come to an agreement: Nothing will change as long as the brand doesn’t do anything too promotional on TikTok, cannibalize its Sephora sales, etcetera. Anyway, TikTok doesn’t seem likely to eat into the Sephora business: Lower-priced items and promotions perform on TikTok, and Mario sits on the higher end of the makeup spectrum. If anything, it’s driving people to shop on the brand’s site.

Marisa Meltzer explains why so many bougie bathhouses are opening in New York. I suspect they serve the same use as the less bougie ones, though. [Vanity Fair]

Gaelle Collet is reportedly joining Alaïa as C.M.O. She’s really good at her job and also everyone is obsessed with her as a person, so whatever is going down there, they will benefit from her presence. [WWD]

Giambattista Valli, whose backer is the Pinault family office, Artémis, seems to be having money troubles. I can write more about this if anyone actually cares. The designer is set to show a Couture collection January 26. [Fashion United]

Chiara Ferragni, the 1.0-era fashion blogger better known as the Blonde Salad, was acquitted in her Italian fraud case. [BBC]

Herewith, an argument that Tony Spring & Co. over at Macy’s could benefit the most from the Saks Global mess. I’m not so sure, but whatever, it’s still worth reading. [Bloomberg]

The New York Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2026 schedule is out. That’s all I got for you on that matter! [CFDA]

Until tomorrow,
Lauren

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