Saks Fifth Avenue has launched its very own tartan to kick off a special "Best of Scotland" celebration this week. The new black-and-white plaid tartan was developed exclusively with the Scottish Tartans Authority, under the guidance of Brian Wilton - one of the world's leading tartan designers - and is now officially registered and certified as the Saks Fifth Avenue Tartan.
Wilton created a distinctive square pattern reflecting the iconic Saks logo and the design or 'sett' used in the tartan worn by the 79th New York Regiment - also known as the Highland Guard - who were a common sight parading the streets of New York in the 1860's in their distinctive tartan 'trews', when the founder of Saks opened his first store.
"Saks Fifth Avenue's heritage is inextricably bound to that of New York, and its house plaid honours that by modernising and image that Andrew Saks and his fellow New Yorkers would have known well in 1867, when the Saks empire was founded," said Wilton. "We worked with Saks to research and create an enduring design that truly connected with its own history. Marching through the streets of the city in that turbulent Civil War period would have been the famous 79th New York Highland Regiment, whose members wore the historic Cameron of Erracht tartan. It is that plaid with a contemporary twist that celebrates the Saks of today and highlights its own durability as a leader in fashion retailing. What better example of this endurance than a stunning tartan."