Saks Off 5th launches shopping app

Saks Off 5th has launched a shopping app to help with their digital growth. Last year, the company converted their web platform to Salesforce, a cloud-based software company that provides tools to help build apps and websites.

Before the pandemic, digital sales were 30 percent of Saks Off 5th’s revenue, which totaled 1 billion dollars in 2019. Within the next three to five years, digital sales are expected to account for 50 percent of the retailer’s revenue.

Off 5th’s brick-and-mortar stores took a hit during the COVID-19 lockdown, as did all physical retail stores, but they have seen their digital sales grow month-over-month since the holiday season. The new shopping app launched in March, but Saks Off 5th is making the marketing push for it now, as they first wanted to test it with store associates and office workers.

Saks Off 5th is in a very unique position to corner the off-price luxury fashion market with the recent demise of Century 21 Department Stores (although they are relaunching) and Barneys New York, whose Barneys Warehouse website was a popular destination for luxury off-price shoppers, have shuttered. Off 5th’s biggest competition would be Nordstrom Rack, although their luxury designer merchandise offering is smaller.

Off 5th’s parent company, Hudson’s Bay Co. (HBC), recently spun off Saks Fifth Avenue and saksfifthavenue.com into separate entities. Off 5th is expected to make more investment in their digital offerings this year as COVID-19 has accelerated the shift to consumers shopping digitally.

Image: Saks Off 5th