Empty Saks

George Jones, ceo of the regional department stores division of Saks Inc. (Birmingham, Ala.), has resigned. The retailer, which is undergoing a federal accounting investigation while it divests itself of its holdings, said Jones would not be replaced.

Jones joined the company as chief of the regional group in 2001. He will leave on Sept. 30, 2005.

The company has been shedding assets to concentrate on its the luxury chain division, Saks Fifth Avenue. It has made it known that it is selling all the stores in the regional group except for the Parisian chain. That 41-store chain named Toni Browning as ceo. She had been ceo of the group’s Proffitt’s and McRae’s stores.