What's In Store: Saks Fifth Avenue

Grande dame Saks gets a much-needed facelift.

By Blythe Copeland

: Working stiffs: Saks newly dapper men's department. Photo by Diana Levine.

Thanks to several million dollars and several months of construction chaos, the city’s formerly dusty (albeit high-end) Saks Fifth Avenue finally takes its place among sophisticated local one-stop-shopping destinations. An airy storewide renovation inspired by award-winning international architect Michael Gabellini and developed by Saks’s in-house design team uses modern paintings and simple orchid accents to lighten up the once drab space; the addition of elite lines (Christian Louboutin shoes, Francesca Guerrera cosmetics, Faraone Mennella jewelry) and swanky in-store boutiques (Dolce & Gabbana, Chanel, Bulgari, Armani) lends the kind of brand-name ammunition that Saks needs to give its fancy competitors a run for their money.

Saks Fifth Avenue, Prudential Center, Boston, 617-262-8500, saks.com.

Originally published in Philadelphia magazine, February 2007