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Parisian

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For other uses, see (disambiguation)}}}.
Parisian is a moderate to upscale U.S. chain of department stores, based in Birmingham, Alabama known for its superior level of personalized service and limited distribution speciality brands such as Karen Kane, Sig Tahari, Free People, 7 For All Mankind, Tommy Bahama, Bobbi Brown, MAC, Kate Spade, Cole Haan, and Coach.

Parisian is a division of Saks Incorporated, the owners of the Saks Fifth Avenue (SFA) department store chain. Parisian currently operates 38 stores located in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, South Carolina, and Tennessee. The chain plans to add two Arkansas stores in Little Rock and Rogers by late 2006. New Parisian stores are also slated for Birmingham, Alabama; Detroit, Michigan; Ridgeland, Mississippi (metropolitan Jackson); and Prattville, Alabama (metropolitan Montgomery) over the next three years.

Contents

History

The chain was founded by sisters Bertha and Estella Sommers under the name Parisian Dry Goods & Millinery Company in 1887 in Birmingham. In 1945, Parisian adopted an aggressive program of brand-name merchandising and enhanced customer service as it expanded. In 1983 it became a publicly traded company and it joined Proffitt's Inc., in 1996. In September of 1998, Proffitt’s, Inc. and Saks Holdings, Inc. completed a merger transaction where Saks Fifth Avenue and its Off 5th outlet stores became the Saks Fifth Avenue Enterprises division of Proffitt’s, Inc. At that time, Proffitt’s, Inc. was renamed Saks Incorporated.

Particularly in its larger markets, Parisian was placed in a marketing tier between the luxury-oriented SFA chain and the company's other more moderate nameplates. At its height, Saks Incorporated operated more than 250 mid-level to high end department stores under its Saks Fifth Avenue Enterprises group, the Parisian division, the Northern Department Store Group (Younkers, Herberger's, Carson Pirie Scott, Bergner's, Boston Store), and its Southern Department Store Group (Proffitt's and McRae's) — plus more than 50 Club Libby Lu specialty shops.

Following the divesting of its Southern Department Store Group in July 2005 to Belk, Inc., and the March 2006 sale of its Northern Department Store Group (controlled under the divisional umbrella of Carson Pirie Scott) to Bon-Ton Stores, Inc., for $1.1 billion, Parisian survives as a division that emphasizes its service, fashion, and specialty items much like its New York-born corporate sibling. Though it shares several markets with SFA, many of Parisian's markets are comparatively smaller in scale.

In January 2006, Saks Incorporated announced that it was exploring strategic alternatives for its 38 Parisian stores (which could lead to a sale), the last of its mid-level department store chains. The company's activity within the last 12 months is seemingly oriented toward the return of Saks Fifth Avenue as an independently operated brand for the first time in more than 30 years. Some industry experts have also speculated that the activity positions a streamlined Saks Incorporated itself for buyout at a later point.

Current Parisian Locations

Alabama

Florida

Georgia

Indiana

Michigan

Mississippi

Ohio

South Carolina

Tennessee

New Parisian store openings

2006

2007

2008

Closed Parisian locations

Alabama

Florida

Georgia

Ohio

South Carolina

Advertising Slogans

External links

 

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