Bondholders can be a tough crowd — just ask Saks Global. 

Equity investors are more excitable and want nothing but growth. But since bondholders have actually loaned a business money, they care about just one thing — that company’s ability to make the required interest payments and to pay up when the bonds come due. 

And debtholders are feeling shakier about Saks, which sold $2.2 billion in junk-rated bonds in December to help it buy Neiman Marcus Group. 

Those bonds were trading at as high as 97.75 cents on the dollar at the start of the year, according to S&P Capital IQ. But trouble in the retail outlook, declines in consumer confidence and tariffs spooked the market, which as of Friday had bondholders selling the IOU’s from Saks for 63.88 cents on the dollar. 

That decline was fast and sharp enough to prompt Saks Global chief executive officer Marc Metrick to step in and try to reassure the market in a call on Monday. 

In addition to some updates on money saved as Neiman’s is melded with Saks, Metrick said the company had between $350 million and $400 million of liquidity now. Additionally, it’s not planning on taking on more debt, but might carve out part of its $1.8 billion asset-backed loan for what’s known as a FILO facility that could be quickly tapped to cover any needs. 

It wasn’t enough for bondholders, who traded the debt down to 55.5 cents on the dollar on Monday. 

That extra jitter passed and a late trade on Tuesday was at 61.43 cents, not far off of where trading started on Monday, according to a market observer. 

The problem is Saks has lots of bills to cover. 

In addition to paying for recent shipments from vendors, it has a long list of past-due bills to suppliers that it’s promised to catch up on. It also has a roughly $120 million interest payment on the bonds due in late June.

It’s a lot to juggle, given all the changes taking place at the company, which also on Tuesday launched a storefront on Amazon, bringing a host of big designer names to the e-commerce giant. 

“I’m sitting here as a CEO in a world where I’ve got a big plan for transformation,” Metrick told WWD on Monday. “I’ve got to invest in that transformation. I’ve got to be a strong counterparty to my brand partners and we’re seeing a turbulent market. There’s a lot of unknowns with what could happen, and I’m further fortifying my balance sheet. That’s what I’m doing.”

If the drop in bond prices makes it seem like Saks is scrambling, the retailer has lots of company.

“Who isn’t scrambling?” said Gary Wassner, CEO of Hilldun Corp., which has been supportive of Saks and helps finance many brands shipping to the company.

“Retail has had to deal with crisis after crisis,” Wassner said. “COVID[-19] caused so much damage, and now tariffs. With consumer confidence dropping, it’s getting harder and harder for the industry to know how to manage operations, purchases and pricing. Uncertainty is not a consumer motivator.

“The bond price concerns me, but I’m not surprised to see it where it is, in an environment like this,” Wassner said. “Saks is a fighter, and [executive chairman] Richard Baker isn’t a person who backs away from a challenge. If Saks Global can normalize its receipt of merchandise, it will improve cash flow and increase margins.”