• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, October 13, 2023

Saks Off 5^th has appointed Kim Miller chief marketing and analytics officer. The luxury off-price company, which was spun off from Saks Fifth Avenue a few years back, says Miller’s appointment is part of its ongoing investment in data, analytics, personalization and loyalty efforts.

The ecommerce company, owned by HBC, created the position in June, with Sara Griffin, then senior vice president of marketing, moving into the role. Griffin left Saks Off 5^th last month and is now chief marketing officer at the Shade Store.

Miller previously served as chief executive officer of Boutique Brands, which invests in online boutique retailers focused on women’s apparel. She was also CMO of Rakuten, a performance marketing and loyalty platform, and senior vice president of ecommerce for Charlotte Russe.

While many retailers find themselves on wobbly footing as consumers scale back apparel spending, the off-price sector has been relatively bright, posting softer declines than other retailers. In Nordstrom’s most recent quarterly results, for example, sales fell 10.1% at the full-price Nordstrom banner but just 4.1% at Nordstrom Rack. Macy’s said its Backstage off-price locations outperformed Macy’s stores, which posted a 9.2% decline in sales. Nordstrom is adding 20 more Rack stores this year, while Macy's plans to add 10 backstage locations.

Companies that are predominantly discounters are thriving. TJX, which owns TJMaxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods, recently said its second-quarter sales and profits topped expectations, with sales climbing 8% to $12.8 billion and net income advancing 23% to $1 billion.

Placer.ai reports that while visits to regular-price clothing stores declined in the first half of the year, below 2022 levels and retail as a whole, visits to the off-price segment skyrocketed. In June, off-price visits jumped 13.3% year over year.

“Rising costs have led many consumers to trade down or seek out affordable luxuries, while other consumers may be attracted to the 'treasure hunt' aspect of off-price shopping,” the location analytics company says in a recent white paper. “The slow return to office and the normalization of hybrid work may also be driving visits, as consumers refresh their office wardrobe with off-price pieces that will only be worn a couple of days a week."