Saks Fifth Avenue just reopened the doors to its New York City flagship, but we saw few shoppers despite enhanced safety precautions, including ultraviolet light handrail sanitizing
Bethany Biron
- Saks Fifth Avenue reopened its flagship location in Manhattan on Wednesday, with limited hours and several enhanced safety precautions, including ultraviolet light handrail sanitizing.
- I visited the store shortly after it opened on 11 a.m., and while I didn't see many shoppers, the employees I talked to said they were glad to be back. Shopping in a pandemic made me anxious, but it more or less felt normal — minus the masks and hand sanitizer everywhere.
- "I'm positive, I feel pretty good about it," David Garcia, a Saks Fifth Avenue sales associate, told me. "I don't feel concerned. We've taken enough precautions to make it feel secure."
- Here's what it was like shopping at Saks Fifth Avenue during a pandemic.
Saks Fifth Avenue may have just reopened the doors to its flagship store, but New Yorkers haven't come running – at least, not yet.
On Wednesday, the department store joined peers like Nordstrom in opening its New York City locations to the public for the first time since March, when non-essential retailers temporarily shuttered to halt the spread of the coronavirus. With the return of the Fifth Avenue flagship, Saks Fifth Avenue has now reopened all 40 of its locations across the US and Canada.
The stores are operating under modified hours and enforcing "enhanced health, safety, and social distancing measures," according to the company. These policies include the mandated use of facial masks, restricted elevator usage, daily health screenings for employees before starting a shift, and updated sanitizing procedures including the use of ultraviolet light on the store's 22 handrails.
I was among the first shoppers to return to the store on Wednesday, entering the iconic, gleaming ten-story building on Fifth Avenue, shortly after it opened at 11 a.m. By the time I arrived from Brooklyn — a journey marking both my first time stepping foot on a subway and in the borough of Manhattan in three months — I was equal parts elated and rattled. Excited, but disoriented.
Based on the scarcity of shoppers I saw within the first hour of Saks Fifth Avenue's reopening, it appears I was one of the few people able to overcome my nervousness and venture out.
Still, the employees were joyful, bubbly, and appeared genuinely happy to be back at work. One such employee was David Garcia, an associate in the watch department on the store's lower level, who told me he is glad to return and feels Saks Fifth Avenue is taking adequate safety precautions.
"I'm positive, I feel pretty good about it," he said. "I don't feel concerned. We've taken enough precautions to make it feel secure."
Whether or not fashionable New Yorkers will start to crawl out of their apartments and back into department stores en masse remains to be seen. In the meantime, here's a closer look at what it's like to shop at the recently reopened Saks Fifth Avenue flagship during a pandemic.
As I approached an eerily empty Fifth Avenue, I immediately saw the Saks windows jubilantly welcoming shoppers back.
The store is currently operating on reduced hours of 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday.
"The reopening of our New York flagship store is a pivotal milestone for Saks Fifth Avenue and another opportunity for us to set the standard for delivering a safe, easy and personalized shopping experience," Saks Fifth Avenue president Marc Metrick said in a press statement.
When I walked in the store shortly after 11 a.m., I immediately saw a large sign detailing the updated safety protocols for shopping, which have been erected at each of the store's main entrances.
The first thing I noticed were the myriad Purell hand sanitizer stations around the store, providing a somewhat bizarre visual contrast among the high fashion looks.
Another Purell station I spotted in the handbag department.
It didn't stop there. In addition to the Purell stations, I found several types of sanitizers scattered on shelves and counters across the store for both employee and customer use.
There was tons of signage throughout the store welcoming shoppers back to the store, and joyful employees greeting me everywhere I turned.
Associates and security guards require that all shoppers wear masks, and employees will provide masks as needed.
Another welcoming sign in the men's department.
In anticipation of an onslaught of returns made from online purchases made during quarantine, Saks has implemented a centralized desk on the main floor for processing returns.
To maintain proper social distancing, Saks Fifth Avenue has restricted use of its elevators to seniors, pregnant women, and individuals with health complications or limited mobility.
In lieu of elevators, Saks is directing shoppers to use its 22 escalators to navigate its ten levels.
After getting the new lay of the land, I decided to make my way up the escalator to the beauty department on the second floor.
For added sanitary precautions, Saks Fifth Avenue installed an ultraviolet light handrail cleaning system designed to kill germs and prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Stickers along the incline mark proper social distancing and provide shoppers with a visual cue for when to step on the escalator.
Signs told me to "hold on with confidence," but frankly I was still too scared to touch anything.
On the second floor I was greeted with signs reminding me to socially distance myself from other shoppers.
The first thing I noticed was that the beauty department no longer offers testing and sampling. Instead, customers can ask a sales associate to work one-on-one with a product of interest.
I also noticed that in-store beauty services, such as eyebrow waxing and facials, are still suspended ...
... as were specialty third-party services like Face Gym.
Ah, sweet relief, another hand sanitizer station right when I was feeling anxious.
There were several signs like this scattered across the store to remind shoppers to social distance.
As I kept wandering the store, I noticed that it was pretty dead.
As it approached noon, several of the other floors were still nearly empty, like the shoe department ....
... and contemporary women's wear ...
... and jewelry. I spotted a lot of bored employees on their phones in these areas.
Still, I was able to find the odd shopper.
One such shopper was Aiste Vaiciunaite, who had been counting down the days until the store's reopening to find a pair of shoes and a bag for her upcoming wedding.
"It feels different, but it's nice to be back," she said. "It's nice to be able to do normal things again, I'm just looking for some normality."
Angela Hwang, a fashion professional visiting the store on Wednesday, said that while she was glad to be back, much of the product seemed the same as the last time she came in March.
Hwang anticipated that the Saks is trying to get rid of excess inventory from spring, hence the lofty sales throughout the store.
We spotted several sale signs with discounts as high as 70%, like this one on the lower level ...
... and this one on the women's designer floor.
Most employees, including Natalie Bunimobice, seemed happy to be back at work. She was briefly furloughed when the store closed in March, but was able to return remotely before some other associates to help with online styling.
"I absolutely feel safe," she said. "We had the meeting to go over what has been done and I don't even clean my home like that, so it's a huge achievement they did for employees and customers."
Garcia, the employee in the watch department, said he didn't anticipate an immediate rush of shoppers but rather a steadily rising number as people get more comfortable engaging in normal activities.
"I think it will be a gradual thing," he said. "Day one is always, you know, day one. We're not really sure exactly what to expect, but whoever does decide to come through we want to make sure that they're feeling comfortable.
After about an hour, I made my way back toward the entrance, but noticed that I felt significantly more at ease than when I first came in.
Ultimately, shopping during a pandemic felt both bizarre and completely normal. Still, not sure I plan to go back anytime soon.
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