Cartier Sues Saks After Store Renovation Causes Location Dustup

(Bloomberg) -- Everyone has a renovation hell story, but Cartier International has turned its experience into a $40 million lawsuit that claims Saks Inc.’s remodeling resulted in its in-store boutique being relocated to shopping Siberia.

Saks’s redesign of the first floor of its 5th Avenue store in Manhattan was messy, creating dust and debris that blanketed the luxury boutique’s gleaming cases which display jewelry, watches and accessories, and reduced foot traffic, according to a lawsuit filed in New York state court in Manhattan on Wednesday.

While Cartier said the lease for the prime in-store location off 49th Street was set to expire in October 2021, Saks ordered in August that it clear out by Oct. 13.

Nicole Schoenberg, a spokeswoman for Hudson’s Bay Company, the owner of Saks, said the firm doesn’t comment on pending litigation but promises the renovation "will deliver a one-of-a-kind experience to our customers” in a “re-imagined store.”

Cartier seeks at least $40 million in damages, wants to stop Saks from terminating the lease and keep it from being moved out.

The case is Cartier v. Saks & Co., 654924/2018, Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York (Manhattan).

To contact the reporter on this story: Patricia Hurtado in Federal Court in Manhattan at pathurtado@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: David Glovin at dglovin@bloomberg.net, Joe Schneider

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