I had a very disappointing experience at Saks Fifth Avenue.
I purchased a pair of Saint Laurent jeans for $1,186. For me, this was absolutely not an impulse purchase. I only bought them because they had the exact fit I had been searching for for a long time. When I tried them on in the store, they fit perfectly in every way except that they were slightly too long.
The sales associate told me that Saks offers tailoring services and assured me that their tailors are very skilled and could shorten the jeans neatly without affecting the fit. Based on that, I went ahead with the purchase and was told the alterations would be finished within two weeks.
When I came back to pick them up, I tried them on again and they no longer fit the way they had before. The length was correct, but the overall fit had changed significantly! Honestly, at first I didn't even know if it was the same pair of jeans. The difference is very obvious in before-and-after photos.
Before the alteration, the jeans fit beautifully and hugged in exactly the right places. After the alteration, they felt like an ordinary pair of stretchy cheap jeans with none of the original structure or flattering fit. Since Saks had altered them, I was no longer allowed to return or exchange them. I was basically forced to accept paying nearly $1,200 for a pair of jeans that no longer look good on me.
If I had known the tailoring would affect the fit this much, I would have gone to a different tailor or simply not had them altered at all. Shortening jeans should not ruin the fit in the waist, hips, and seat. I was incredibly upset by this, especially because this was a very expensive purchase for me, and they were only worth the money because of how perfectly they fit before.
I also know someone else who owns the same jeans, and she wears them frequently and has washed them multiple times without the fit changing in this way. So whatever happened during Saks’ alteration process clearly changed the garment in a way that should not have happened.
Very disappointed. I expected much better service and expertise from a luxury department store.