Nordstrom and Saks lead department stores in March

New York City -- Showing that luxury is experiencing measurable bounce in the recovering economy, the higher-end department stores led the same-store sales pack in March. Saks outperformed the rest of the category, recording an 11.1% same-store sales increase during the month. Total sales rose 9.2% to $260.2 million, compared with $238.2 million in the year-ago period. For March, the strongest categories at Saks Fifth Avenue stores included women’s designer collections and contemporary apparel, men’s apparel, women’s and men’s shoes, handbags, fashion jewelry and fragrances. Nordstrom recorded a 5.1% same-store increase in March, surpassing Wall Street expectations for a