Saks Q4 Comparable Sales Up 9%, Jewelry Sales Strong

Retailer Saks Incorporated announced a January 2008 comparable store sales increase of 4.1 percent year-over-year. Fiscal fourth quarter (ended February 2) comparable store sales increased 9 percent over the previous year.

For the fiscal year, sales from owned departments increased 13.3 percent (11.7 percent comparable), from $2.867 billion to $3.249 billion.

The strongest categories at Saks Fifth Avenue in January were jewelry, women’s designer and “gold range” apparel, women’s eveningwear, men’s accessories and shoes, and cosmetics. Saks noted that it continues to experience a more challenging macroeconomic and competitive environment, and consistent with trends commencing in the third quarter, customers have continued to shift more of their spending to promotional events.