What: US luxury department stores are competing harder for salespeople who generate millions in annual sales, using uncapped commissions, solid base pay, dedicated assistants and even private boutiques to recruit and keep them.

Why it is important: As aspirational shoppers pull back, a few sellers who hold the wealthiest clients carry a growing share of sales, and their client books can leave with them for a rival store or an independent practice.

Nordstrom approached Catherine Bloom while she was generating hundreds of millions in sales for Neiman Marcus. She declined, then joined in February 2025 as director of luxury styling after Saks Global, fresh from its $2.7 billion acquisition of Neiman Marcus, struggled with debt, unpaid vendors and inventory problems, which hampered her client service. She now hosts clients in an appointment-only boutique on Melrose Place in Los Angeles.

Competition has intensified as AI and luxury price hikes raise the value of personal service and a weak economy leaves retailers more dependent on big spenders. Nordstrom's selling point is uncapped commission, at rates from 3% to 14.5% depending on merchandise. Saks runs a top-seller programme starting at $1 million in annual sales and rising to Master Stylist or Master Seller status above $7 million.

Recruiters cite charisma, emotional intelligence and an entrepreneurial streak, but the client book is the hard asset, and its value rises when it brings clients a store lacks, such as Gen Z shoppers. Top sellers also feed merchandising intelligence and mentor colleagues. A reliable base salary, recruiters argue, curbs aggressive selling and internal rivalry. Bloomingdale's adds client lounges, upgraded systems and, for some, dedicated assistants.

IADS Notes: The Saks Global turmoil that opened the door to Catherine Bloom's move has since ended in a restructuring: the group emerged from bankruptcy as Exemplar Luxury Group with 75% less debt, fewer stores and staff cuts, and must now restore exclusives, loyalty and priority brand allocations (WWD, September 2026). Within the group, Bergdorf Goodman has made its top sales associates the cornerstone of its recovery, with the 40 highest-volume associates generating about $200 million a year, after unpaid vendors under Saks Global had left them with little new product to show (The New York Times, October 2026). Bloomingdale's chief executive Olivier Bron runs his top personal shoppers as businesses within the business, supplied with brands, inventory, systems and space, while the chain's wealthiest customers grow in number and spend more (BoF, October 2026). Department stores are not the only bidders for this talent: independent personal shoppers, many of them former staff laid off at Saks and other luxury retailers, now win the top-client relationship on commissions starting at 10% of spend (Financial Times, October 2026). Retail failures put the same people at risk: after Harvey Nichols collapsed, Frasers Group made goodwill payments to unpaid freelance personal shoppers and stylists and moved them from quarterly to monthly pay (City AM, August 2026).

Inside the battle for U.S. luxury's million-dollar salespeople