eCommerce Strategy Consultant - Rick Watson - RMW Commerce Consulting

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When MyTheresa and Saks.com IPO

MyTheresa filed for an IPO - a luxury fashion platform that has achieved growth even after being acquired by Neiman Marcus. Like clockwork, investors need to get something for this asset.

Is it any wonder that a few days later Hudson's Bay announced plans for a Saks (dot) com IPO?

We are in a cyclical upswing for any compelling digital presence in growth mode. Particularly ones trapped inside larger debt-ridden entities.

There are a couple of big questions:

  • Seems like Saks online offering trajectory is very different than MyTheresa that was an acquisition and never really part of Neiman Marcus. Whatever happened to omnichannel?

  • I expect those differences to play a major role in their valuation.

  • Does this say anything about Amazon's Luxury Fashion plans?

  • I wonder if HBC is just looking for a buyer for Saks at this point, rather than fully expecting the website to IPO.

Finally, If large omnichannel retailers can just "IPO their websites", we truly are back to 1999-level hype.

What's next? Target and Walmart IPO their websites? Lowes? Home Depot?