In a deal that shows just how hard things are getting in the luxury retail space, Saks Fifth Avenue's parent is purchasing rival department store company Neiman Marcus for $2.65 billion, The Wall Street Journal reported. Amazon — which has long tried to boost its luxury offerings as part of its "everything store" concept — and Salesforce are getting in on it, too, with both taking minority stakes in the new company, Saks Global. As e-commerce and the power of luxury conglomerates like LVMH and Kering have grown, department stores are facing diminishing returns. If not, rather than schlep back to the department store, why not go straight to the source, the Loewe boutique? It also makes the new company's leader — Marc Metrick, who runs Saks' e-commerce business — a natural choice.

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Persons: Neiman Marcus, Taylor, Macy's, Bergdorf Goodman, Porter, Loewe, — Marc Metrick, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Saint Laurent, Kering, Neimans, They've, Bernard Arnault's LVMH Organizations: Service, Saks Fifth, Street Journal, Saks Global, Loewe, Saks, Dior Locations: New York