Saks Fifth Avenue plans to close its location at The Fashion Mall at Keystone, as part of a larger plan to redevelop a portion of the upscale shopping center.
The store is expected to close at an unspecified time later this year. It will be a significant shift for the Simon Property Group-owned mall, where Saks has operated its 120,000-square-foot store since 2003, when it replaced a vacant Jacobson’s store after the Jacobson’s chain went bankrupt.
Simon has not shared specific details of the planned overhaul, but said Thursday the redevelopment will feature a “curated selection of highly sought-after retail brands,” along with first-in-market dining and entertainment, an outdoor plaza and new shopping space. The project will be focused on the southeastern section of the property, but the company did not disclose if other stores will be affected by the effort.
“Simon is leading the evolution of today’s retail landscape with the strategic transformation of key properties across the country into best-in-class lifestyle destinations,” Mark Silvestri, president of development at Simon, said in written remarks. “The redevelopment further solidifies The Fashion Mall at Keystone’s dedication to providing a stand-out retail, lifestyle and community-focused destination for the region.”
Saks is the second-largest anchor at the Fashion Mall after Nordstrom, which occupies 130,000 square feet. Crate and Barrel is the third biggest store, at 33,000 square feet.
“Saks Fifth Avenue has decided to close our store in Indianapolis, Indiana,” a Saks spokesperson said in an email. “These decisions are never easy, but they are the right ones for the company. We are committed to treating every associate with respect and fairness throughout the process; all eligible associates will receive appropriate employment separation packages.”
New York City-based Saks operates 39 full-service stores in North America, down from more than 50 a decade ago. The Keystone store is the chain’s only store in Indiana, with the closest other Saks found in Chicago and Columbus, Ohio.
The 157-year-old retailer also operates nearly 100 Saks Off Fifth off-price stores, but none of those are in Indiana.
Hudson’s Bay Co., or HBC, which acquired Saks in 2013 for almost $3 billion, has been struggling with debt problems. Bloomberg reported in January that HBC, the oldest company in North America, was trying to refinance a $1.3 billion loan.
The Fashion Mall is the sixth largest shopping center in central Indiana, according to IBJ data. The 716,000-square-foot mall features more than 40 stores and has 3,350 parking spaces, including two garages. The mall opened in the early 1970s and was last overhauled in 2012.
The city’s Department of Metropolitan Development said it has not yet received any filings for a project at the mall.
By Mickey Shuey, Indianapolis Business Journal
