The chief executive and chairman of Saks Inc., R. Brad Martin, is a man on a mission. Sprinting through the retail chain's Saks Fifth Avenue store in Birmingham, Ala., Martin rattles off the myriad changes he has implemented to give the grande dame of fashion a warmer, inclusive feel―"inviting luxury," as he puts it. You find it in the coffee kiosk just inside the front door, as well as in a brighter layout and the new "gold range" of less-expensive designer apparel. Martin, 50, is confident he has found the formula that will boost traffic and sales at the beleaguered retail icon. "Luxury does not need to be exclusive or aloof, or, we could say, snooty," says Martin, who in 1998 bought the Saks Fifth Avenue chain. A onetime Tennessee state legislator―the youngest ever at age 21―Martin built his fortune in the real estate business before buying a local department store chain, Profitt's, in 1984. He accumulated a portfolio of mid-market regional department store chains, including Younkers, Berg-ner's, Carson Pirie Scott, and Herberger's, before the Saks deal.
展开▼
