| Brad Martin By Cathryn Stout Be open to changing your mind, but not your character, was the message Saks Inc. chairman Brad Martin delivered to the Economic Club's monthly dinner Thursday night. A crowd of just more than 200 people gathered at the Holiday Inn at the
As part of the companywide reorganization, Saks recently sold its midtier department store chain Parisian to focus on its flagship, high-end Saks stores. In an interview Thursday afternoon, Martin said that department stores are
facing stiffer competition from big-box retailers like Target and Wal-Mart
because the cost of apparel has drastically decreased due to cheaper
production in countries like "The traditional department store business itself has not grown," he said. "The growth has been in specialty and discount department stores." He said that this lack of growth has lead to "massive amounts of consolidation" to offset expenses. Economic Club president Mary Day called Martin's speech timely because the retail industry is reflective of the economy at large. "What's happening in retail now is happening across a lot of industries," Day said. "Almost all industries are either consolidating or trying to." Day also said Martin's background as the youngest person ever elected to the Tennessee General Assembly in 1972 where he started at the age of 21 and served for 10 years, and his position on the board of directors at First Horizon Corp. appeal to the club's members, who all hold various high level-executive positions throughout the city. Versatility, adapting to trends like the Internet and staying true to his convictions has been the key to his success said Martin. "My general theme to the members is when you're in a leadership role of an enterprise or a business I would encourage people to be themselves and to be willing to change their mind," he said, "Don't be too affected by the praise or the criticism." |
Stay true to yourself, says Saks chief