Saks CEO reduces orders to boost profits

New York City Saks CEO Stephen Sadove said Monday that the company is aiming to order at least 20% less from its vendors in 2009 and forecasts a subsequent jump in gross margin, according to a report by Bloomberg.

The cuts may curb what Sadove has described as the “enormous excess” that existed last year in the luxury retail category.

“Across the board you are going to find less of the sizes, less of the availability in almost all of the categories,” Sadove told Bloomberg. “You are probably going to see less aggressive markdowns than you saw last year.”

Neiman Marcus cut its orders 25% in the quarter ended May 2 and said on June 10 that it is being “conservative” for the rest of the year. Both Neiman and Saks have said they are weeding out underperforming labels.

Nordstrom and Cincinnati-based Macy’s have said they are buying less, too.