Premium retailers: Saks and Nordstrom

Saks.com is owned and managed by Saks Incorporated, an American department store, headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. It was formerly known as Proffitt's prior to the company's 1998 acquisition of Saks Holdings. It went public in 1996. It operates through its extensive chain of 54 stores spread over 25 States. It now enjoys the patronage of millions of satisfied customers and has evolved into a premium retailer outlet dealing in shoes, accessories, Men's, women's and kids apparels apart from jewellery and gifts sections that make it a complete family store for all your needs.

Nordstrom was originally started in 1901 as a shoe store by John Nordstorm and his friend, Carl Wallin in Seattle. Strongly based on the bedrock of good service, fine selection and impeccable quality, the company soon flourished, riding on the goodwill of its committed customers. By the early 1960's, the company diversified into apparels under a new store name of Nordstrom Best. Basking under the peerless glory of a 100 year old tradition it has carved an indelible niche in fashion industry by evolving into a National fashion specialty chain with 155 U.S. stores located in 27 states. The public company of Nordstrom also operates 36 international Façonnable boutiques in Europe apart from enjoying a strong online presence of being a complete family store.

The home page of Saks.com is bright and cheerful with many pretty faces and attractive product display that allows the viewers to steal a few glances of its impressive product range. The search bar allows you to search for any item and the various links like men's, women's, shoes and handbags will take you to the respective segment with ease. You can take your pick from clutches, shoulder bags, totes and hobos among others! Enjoy the freedom of sorting by brand, category or price apart from refining your search by your area of interest. The store locator will lead you to your nearest Saks store. The customer service apart from the customary F AQ has a live session where you can talk to the customer service executive over phone or chat online.

The main page of Nordstorm on the other hand, in grey shade with a silhouetted figure retains its creative and aesthetic look without any splash of colours. The links on top take you on a whirlwind trip through its various sections such as men, women, juniors, babies, beauty & heath and so on. The search bar helps you to find the desired product easily. In its pursuit of providing the best shopping experience, Nordstorm shops are all equipped with coffee bars to keep you in your best shopping spirits. The search bar has options to search by brand and price or you can seek the assistance of the fashion guide to know the hottest fashions doing the rounds! Its women's section has an impressive array of sections to opt for, right from athletic wear to jackets, jean guides to everyday casuals and many, many more. You will also find separate segments for petite and plus sizes that meet the diverse shopping requirements of all with élan. If you do not find your reverie outfit here you are unlikely to find it anywhere else in the world!

Both Saks & Nordstorm have been the trusted fashion designers of the glamorous folks for long and has endeared themselves with their hottest and trendy collections that keep their customers well tuned with changing times and fashions.

But the Nordstorm website has a distinct cutting edge over its competitor in terms of richness in content and extent of information tastefully weaved into its web pages apart from the advanced search options that scoop out the most fitting outfit in terms of colour , designer label and cost. The links are swift and get the precise information that you are seeking without being forced to make compromises as in other sites.

Usha Hari

Hi-Tech Editorial Division