Free Republic

Saks Fifth Avenue parent HBC said on Thursday it will acquire Neiman Marcus Group in a $2.65 billion deal combining the storied retailers. The combination will establish Saks Global, which will include Saks Fifth Avenue, Saks OFF 5TH, Neiman Marcus’ namesake department store chain and Bergdorf Goodman. “We’re thrilled to take this step in bringing together these iconic luxury names,” HBC CEO Richard Baker. said in a statement. “For years, many in the industry have anticipated this transaction and the benefits it would drive for customers, partners and employees.” “This is an exciting time in luxury retail,” Baker added, citing...

In the past week, he was spotted at Polo Bar Friday evening, Saks Fifth Avenue’s new L’Avenue Saturday night, and at the Regency Bar & Grill for a power breakfast on Tuesday. “He used to sit in the back room because he had a lot of private conversations,” according to a Regency waiter. “But now he sits in the main room.” While New York City liberals may have despised Cohen when he worked for the president, he’s enjoying new popularity since his congressional testimony. “People come up and hug him,” said a friend. “New Yorkers see him as someone in...

Just who is Donald J. Trump's Prince, and why has he come now to buy into the Plaza Hotel? Prince Walid bin Talal is the Saudi ruling family's most prominent -- and most adventurous -- international investor, with large stakes in Citicorp, Four Seasons Hotels, Fairmont Hotels, Euro Disney and Saks Fifth Avenue, which is controlled by Investcorp of Bahrain.

High-end department store Saks Fifth Avenue Inc. said Wednesday that it will close its Denver store in March, making it the seventh store the New York retailer has closed since July. Since July, Saks has also closed stores in San Diego and Mission Viejo, Calif., Southampton, New York, Portland, Ore., Charleston, S.C., and Plano, Texas.

<p>BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- Winona Ryder was observed three times by security at stores in New York and Beverly Hills and videotaped twice in suspected shoplifting incidents before her arrest at Saks Fifth Avenue, according to secret court transcripts released Friday.</p>

BEVERLY HILLS (Reuters) - The jury charged with deciding whether actress Winona Ryder was guilty of shoplifting in Beverly Hills ended its first day of deliberations on Tuesday without reaching a verdict. The six-man, six-woman jury -- several of whom work in the entertainment industry, including an ex-studio head -- spent the day deliberating after an extraordinary six-day trial which featured Ryder's videotaped trip to the posh Saks Fifth Avenue store last December but never heard from the actress, herself. Ryder, 31, arrived early at the Beverly Hills court on Tuesday dressed in dark pants and looking pale and tense....