Saks Fifth Avenue — Local services in San Antonio

I had the pleasure to visit SAKS Fifth Avenue in North Star Mall. I wanted to purchase some meaningful presents for family members, and I had an idea of what I was looking for.

On the weekends, I am a t-shirt, jeans, and cowboy boots type of Dad. I mention this, because SAKS is a high-end luxury store. I walked in from the lower level parking garage entrance and noticed the store to be busier than usual. I walked toward the jewelry counter and was promptly greeted by an employee named Ryan. I mentioned I was browsing around and he was polite and not intrusive. When I approached him for help in seeing earrings from several display cases he was grateful to help. I noticed genuine sincerity in his tone and patience with my indecisiveness. I asked for his honest opinion on some selections I had narrowed down to, and he asked relevant questions on the nature of the gifts. It meant a lot because he was not trying to just sell inventory. I developed good rapport with Ryan, and felt like I’d known him for years rather than half an hour. After I made two jewelry selections, I asked him if I could grab another item I had in mind (women’s perfume) to purchase everything in one transaction. He said of course, and the women’s fragrance representatives were very knowledgeable. I joked I was gifting the same generic “Chanel No. 5” perfume my Mother loves. I asked if he was able to leave his department and help me throughout the store because quite frankly, he had already exceeded my expectations. He obliged and accompanied me to the fragrance department and politely asked if my Mother was open to other fragrances. I figured he’d been right so far why not? Ryan provided a spray sample of a perfume he previously purchased for his Mother and I thought “Wow”. No disrespect to Chanel No. 5, but I preferred his choice. As we returned to the jewelry counter he and asked if there was anything else he could help me with. I told him I wanted to get my toddler daughter some earrings but figured this probably wouldn’t be the store because she’d probably lose one. Ryan directed me to a counter I previously looked past and suggested a pair of triangular shaped stud earrings that were perfect! I was surprised on the price point as well. While ringing up my purchase he asked if I was in the SAKS computer system. I said yes, although I don’t shop here often. He found my information and I was grateful for his help.

I am not one to write reviews, if I’ve had exemplary service wherever it maybe I’ll provide positive feedback to a supervisor. What led me to write a review came a couple weeks later. I received a SAKS thank you note in the mail, handwritten by Ryan hoping the gifts brought joy. Yes, they did! Five stars to SAKS and Ryan in...

I wanted to take a moment to recognize the incredible service I received from Kelly in the Contemporary Department at your San Antonio location. Over the weekend, I found the perfect dress at the Saks Fifth Avenue store in New York City for an event I have this coming Friday. The store didn’t have my size in stock, so the sales associate placed an online order for me and assured me it would arrive by Wednesday.

Unfortunately, I began receiving delay notifications via email, and when I reached out to Saks online customer service for help, I was met with a less-than-helpful response. I was simply told that if the dress hadn’t shipped, it likely wouldn’t arrive in time. Frustrated but still hopeful, I called the customer service line directly. After speaking to another representative, I was told the dress was shipping from San Antonio, and I’d need to be transferred there for more information.

After being on hold for over 45 minutes, I began calling around to different departments at the San Antonio store—and that’s when I reached Kelly. Despite not being part of customer service or involved in my order, she immediately offered to help. She tracked down the details and found that my order had originally been placed with the Houston store but was transferred to San Antonio just the day before. She said, “Hold on—I have a relationship with the person who processes our online orders. Let me give him a call and see what I can do.” She took my phone number, contacted him directly, and made sure my dress was packed up and overnighted to me so it would arrive in time for my event.

This dress wasn’t a high-ticket item—it was around $140—but Kelly could clearly hear the urgency in my voice and genuinely cared about helping me. She didn’t have to take that extra step. She wasn’t making commission, and she had no obligation to assist with an online order, but she went above and beyond to make sure I had what I needed.

Coming from a background in hospitality and customer service myself, and as someone who’s received a leadership award from Harvard, I truly understand how rare it is to find someone who leads with empathy, initiative, and follow-through the way Kelly did. She turned a frustrating experience into one that left a lasting positive impression, and she deserves to be recognized.

Thank you, Kelly—you completely turned my day around, and I’m...

I do not usually write a review, let alone a negative review. I called Saks online to price match a blouse. I do not price match, but I had been eyeing this blouse at Saks for a couple months and noticed it was on sale at a few retailers. The lady I spoke with found the item at the other competitor department store to price match and approved the match. She explained I would need to pay full price, but the price adjustment would be applied. A few days later, the blouse arrived, but the price match never occurred. I was charged full price. I called and the lady apologized and said they would most likely approve the price match since they had already made that commitment. I received an email from Saks saying they denied the price match. By this time, Saks had the item at 25% off and did not even offer that option. I returned the unopened blouse today. A few calls, email, return label and ultimately returning it directly to our local store, took time out of my schedule and was inconvenient. Even the lady who returned the blouse was not kind. It would have been a lot easier, if Saks would have denied the price match from the beginning. It is not right to place the inconvenience on the customer when Saks made the commitment. If it was an employee mistake, it still should not be placed on the customer. That is wrong. It is not a big deal, but left a negative taste for Saks. It is fascinating how when you have such a negative experience you never want to shop there again. Even as I was leaving the store today after returning the blouse, I never wanted to support, shop, or speak positively about Saks again. It has been a favorite in the past. I will go out of my way to support the stores that have impeccable customer service. It is worth it. It was just a summer blouse. Nothing expensive. It seems like my experience should be unacceptable. I love style and clothing, but Saks now holds a negative...