Behind the scenes, Saks has begun taking a channel-agnostic approach to merchandising, according to CEO Stephen Sadove. "We're now going to the vendor community as a single entity between the stores and the dot-com, and we're looking at our business on an omnichannel basis and managing the inventory in that manner," said Sadove at the retailer's shareholder meeting in early June. The retailer is also adding more items to its online inventory.

All these moves toward omnichannel retailing constitute "a major undertaking, in which we're spending well north of $100m over a several-year period to get that capability," said Sadove. "The transformation in omnichannel is pervasive across the organization." By the end of this year, he estimates the retailer will be 60 percent to 70 percent of the way through these capital expenditures.

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