By Doug Stephens As the recession drags on, it's become clear that few in the retail sector are being spared its wrath. In separate stories this week, New York icon Saks Fifth Avenue and super-luxe retailer Neiman Marcus conceded to just how bad the situation has become. With both chains bleeding double-digit sales and profit declines, strategic shifts are taking place that go to the very heart of their respective value propositions. These changes, unless carefully managed, could have lasting negative implications for both brands. For example, the once venerable Saks is now using gift cards and lower priced merchandise to coax aspirational customers back to their stores. They also reported a 52 percent increase in their use of coupons, a sales tool that until recently was a foreign concept at Saks. Neiman Marcus has likewise called for fundamental changes to its assortments in order to provide lower priced, entry point products for hesitant shoppers.