Dior and Saks kick off festive holiday partnership with an exciting event

The festive season begins in New York City with Saks Fifth Avenue and Dior's celebration, overshadowing the traditional Rockefeller Center tree lighting. The annual unveiling of the holiday window display at Saks Fifth Avenue shifts its usual Wednesday after Thanksgiving showcase to the Monday prior, in collaboration with Dior for the first-of-its-kind 'Carousel of Dreams' activation.

The spectacle, more than just window displays, incorporates a large circular building façade, illuminated in reference to the zodiac signs central to Dior's women's offerings since 2017. The event commenced with the closure of Fifth Avenue's rush hour traffic for roughly 12 minutes. Spectators such as Tracee Ellis Ross, Alexandra Daddario, Nina Dobrev, Rachel Zegler, Lola Tung, and Ashley Park, observed from private bleachers located across the street.

Saks CEO, Marc Metrick, soundly initiated the festive activities amid the background noise of a police siren, illustrating excitement about the collaborating businesses' longstanding relationship. He emphasized that the iconic holiday campaign alongside Dior, which has been in partnership for over seven decades, will extend throughout the Saks ecosystem, from its e-commerce platform, Saks.com, to its stunning storefront. Also, recognition was given to Dior for their creative input and impeccable design in culminating the most ambitious display in Saks' history.

Following this, Delphine Arnault and CEO of Christian Dior Couture, graced the stage to welcome all attendees. Expressing her joy for the ongoing collaboration, she highlighted the celebration of the festive season's dreams and magic through Dior's creativity, joyfulness, and savoir-faire. She commended Maria Grazia Chiuri, Creative Director of Women's Ready-to-Wear, Haute Couture and Accessories, for designing the costumes worn by Martha Graham Dance Company in a performance at the event.

With massive anticipation, Dior ambassador Jennifer Lawrence took center stage to infuse laughter into the crowd with her lively performance. Lawrence, joined by Metrick and Arnault, initiated a 3-2-1 countdown, leading to the unveiling of the store window, adorned with zodiac signs, symbols, and a multi-colored light show. The performance, featuring flowing, sheer navy costumes worn by male and female dancers, gave off a distinct French celebratory feel, despite being performed by an American dance troupe.

Wrapping up the event with a bang, a firework display lit up the night sky, adding more glamor to the event, despite ruffling New York's pigeon scene. Following the grand display, the crowd was ushered out of the active thoroughfare onto the sidewalk where attendees were welcomed inside the store for a cocktail gathering.

Commenting about the partnership with Dior, Metrick expressed to FashionNetwork.com how this collaboration animated the festive spirit on Fifth Avenue. Metrick attributed the successful event to the partnership with Dior, whose New York to Paris-themed displays were exclusive to Saks. He pointed out the exclusivity of their collection being available online only at Saks, an honor given the brand's restrictive online presence.

Troubles surfaced for the retailer the following day, with BoF highlighting alleged non-payment issues with several vendors. Despite these allegations, the CEO of Hudson Bay Company, Saks' parent firm, declared they had secured $340 million by leveraging their real estate holdings to support Saks' growth. This development, along with the Dior collaboration that will illuminate Fifth Avenue up until January 5, 2024, assures an additional cash flow into its centennial year in 2024.