Talk:Macy's

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Former good article nomineeMacy's was a good articles nominee, but did not meet the good article criteria at the time. There may be suggestions below for improving the article. Once these issues have been addressed, the article can be renominated. Editors may also seek a reassessment of the decision if they believe there was a mistake.
Article milestones
DateProcessResult
October 26, 2007Good article nomineeNot listed

Flagships[edit]

There are only three Macy's flagships- New York, Chicago and San Francisco. Though other cities might be headquaters for different divisions of Macy's, consumer flagships are different. The federated website explains that there are only three flagships, so this is the most accurate.

At first I thought the Philadelphia info was wrong (nothing about it on Macy's or FDS's Web sites) but I came across a lot of stuff when I searched Google. It appears that Macy's just opened their first store in downtown Philadelphia on August 2 in the old Wanamaker's store. Both the local ABC affiliate [1] and the Philadelphia Inquirer indicate that Macy's is calling the store its Philadelphia flagship store.[2]
It clearly states in the Inquirer article, "Macy's brass insists that this store has flagship status." Why would the paper lie? Fixing. Ajsphila 20:31, 15 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Macy's might have small flagships in every state that they do busness, but the official flagships of the store still only number three. New York, Chicago and San Francisco. http://www.nbc5.com/money/9043910/detail.html

Charlotte, North Carolina got a new one too.

The funny thing is that the Philadelphia store will not carry high-end brands like the upscale California stores. In the Inquirer article, Macy's East says that they're not attacking the upscale market because Barney's and Saks are already there. I suspect the real reason is because the Rust Belt market is not as strong economically as California, but of course I can't add that to the article since that would be original research. --Coolcaesar 19:04, 6 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]
  • The NBC link is good. You mentioned earlier a Federated website link. Do you have that? TonyTheTiger 14:55, 7 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Since you both have an interest in Macy's research, I was wondering if either of you would have info that would help me improve the the cellar page. Do you know how many stores actually have basement level "cellars"? Many stores have a cellar themed area or department at or above ground level, but its biggest stores (including NY and Chi flagships) have them in the basement. TonyTheTiger 15:00, 7 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

  • The store in Philly is a flagship for the city, not for Macy's. Similarly, a store in San Antonio, Texas, is considered a flagship. "Locally, the company has launched a multimillion-dollar campaign to convert its stores to reflect the Macy's brand, focusing most of its attention on its flagship Foley's store at North Star Mall....The Macy's at North Star will be flagship Macy's in San Antonio with the most changes."[3]Clipper471 13:02, 19 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]
    • "In fact, the State Street store will become one of Macy's three flagships, joining the Macy's stores at Herald Square in New York City and Union Square in San Francisco."[4] (USA Today, June 8, 2006)Clipper471 13:42, 19 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]
    • "Field’s on State Street will become one of three Macy’s flagship stores nationwide (the others being Macy’s Herald Square in New York and Macy’s Union Square in San Francisco.)"[5](Chicago Sun Times, April 27, 2006)Clipper471 13:42, 19 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]
    • "Federated’s two other flagship stores—Macy’s Herald Square in New York and Macy’s Union Square in San Francisco—operate virtually as separate businesses with their own marketing, special events, visual merchandising and vendor arrangements."[6] (Crains, January 30, 2006) Clipper471 13:31, 19 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

The Philadelphia store is a flagship. There are no news articles I can find which say it is a "Philadelphia only flagship" - what does this mean? Ajsphila 18:08, 21 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

  • "Besides doing some painting and adding some fixtures, Macy's has pretty much preserved the historic Wanamaker building. It's a huge building, which makes this one of the few flagship stores across the country."[7] (WCAU, August 2, 2006) Ajsphila 18:08, 21 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]
  • "Macy's brass insists that this store has flagship status, a designation held only by its Herald Square store in Manhattan."[8] (Philadelphia Inquirer, August 3, 2006) Ajsphila 18:08, 21 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]
  • "Macy’s made history, opening its first flagship Philadelphia store at 1300 Market Street in Center City." [9] (KYW-TV, August 2, 2006) Ajsphila 18:08, 21 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]
After some reflection, I tentatively agree with Clipper471's position. It looks like as if Macy's is promoting the renovated store in Philadelphia as a flagship store to the regional media but is apparently not promoting it nationwide as the equal of the giant flagship stores in San Francisco, New York, and Chicago. It's possible that the conflicting articles we're seeing reflect confusion within FDS about how to promote the entrance of the Macy's brand into the Philadelphia market. I'll change my conclusion if and when Macy's updates their Web site to call the Philadelphia store a flagship store. --Coolcaesar 22:32, 21 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Disputed section: Where does Macy's fit?[edit]

I have to say, I think Macy's is a cut above JC Penney, Belk, Sears, etc...so I have changed that.

Macy's has always been regarded as a higher level dept. store, above Penny's, Kohl's, Sears, etc., but definitely below Nordstrom's, Neiman's and Lord & Taylor, which are considered "luxury" dept. stores. --Markt3 16:26, 12 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I concur. In turn, Sears, Penney's and Kohl's are definitely above Target and Wal-Mart. So that's the hierarchy of prestige among department stores in the United States. --Coolcaesar 18:19, 12 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

So who keeps putting Macy's with Penny's and Sears? That needs to stop. By labels alone, Macy's is above Dillards, Penneys, Sears, etc....

Macy's places advertising emphasis on many of the same brands available at JC Penney, Sears, Kmart and Kohl's. Less expensive secondary lines are supplied to all of these stores by companies like Vera Wang and Martha Stewart. Other lines emphasized by Macy's are Donald Trump and various rap personalities. In response, Kohl's and JC Penney increased their own advertising for higher end merchandise, arguably better than that offered by Macy's. Many retail analysts and published reports by the Associated Press and other national newsmedia include Macy's in the same category as JC Penney, Kohl's, Sears and Walmart.

It really depends on what store you go to since they don't all sell the same stuff. 02:49, 15 July 2006 (UTC) OtherPerson


First of all, let it be known that I am an employee that work's at Macy's of Walnut Creek. I am a sales associate in the cosmetics/fragrances department and the specific counter I work at is men's fragrances. I started work the first day after thanksgiving 2005. With that said.... So I noticed that someone reassociated Macy's to the same level as JCPenny's and Sears. Below is quote the statement.

The company is part of the Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores and competes on an average price level above J.C. Penney and Sears, on level with Dillard's, but below Nordstrom and sister chain Bloomingdale's.

What I find disheartening is that there is correct facts but they are jumbled in a manner that doesn't enhance the stores image. Yes, Macy's is part of Federated Department Stores(FDS). FDS is based out of Ohio along with Federated's credit call center, know as FACS, or Federated Accounts and Credit Services. On September 6, 2006, FDS officially changed everyone of stores it manages, i.e. Bullock's & Foley's, to either Macy's or Bloomingdales. Macy's has always prided itself on a motto about ourselves. We say that, as "america's department store" we offer our customer afford luxury and fashion. All within reasonable a price range the avg middle american could afford if they wanted to buy it. Macy's, as well as bloomingdales, offers something that no Penny's or Sear's will ever be able to provide... and that is outstanding customer service. FDS employees are here for the customer and i've never seen a lick of employees actually caring to assist anyone... i occasionally take a walk-thru to see whats up in the competition. Nordstrom's is perseved has 'high society' mostly because you will prolly need that massive amount of money to buy most anything there. And Bloomingdale's is up-scal deptartment store and carries boutiques of fashion designers. Of course merchandise isn't with out the price tag. If there is no real strong objections to me altering that quote, then i will do so. --Sfcollegeguy 07:49, 23 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

You're talking about service, while the text you are referring to is talking about price level. Two different things. Clipper471 04:01, 24 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Since Macy's renamed all of the MayCo stores, it's obvious that Macy's is on the same playing field of JC Penney and Sears. There is no extra level with the downsizing of the retail market. --Write On 1983 03:54, 3 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
It's not "obvious" at all. Does that also mean Macy's now competes with Wal-Mart and Target? The number of stores has nothing to do with the level of competition. The product differentiation, quality, customer service, etc. are greater factors. Clipper471 20:01, 3 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
With the merger of MayCo, Macy's is no different than JC Penney. In a shrinking department store age, the dinosaurs ARE competing with Target and Wal-Mart for business. They're competing with American Eagle, Best Buy, AnF, too! Macy's, Sears, Penney's, Dillard's are all the same. I've tagged it as needed a citation. If no citation can be found, the information will be rewritten. --Write On 1983 21:46, 3 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Can you provide a citation to support your claim? If so, please provide it to the article. Clipper471 03:56, 4 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
We're talking specifically about price level here (as is the disputed sentence), not competition for dollars. Clipper471 04:05, 4 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Prices can vary depending on the market. For instance, a Macy's in Erie, Pa., will not be priced as high as in Herald Square.
This article provides information that depicts Macy's is on target now with Kohl's and J.C. Penney. Pgh Post-Gazette: Shoppers show they're starting to accept Macy's
I'm not disputing that Macy's ONCE was above Penney's and Sear's. It was once an exclusive retailer, only available in some cities across the nation. But, with the merger with MayCo, Macy's has expanded its brand name and, thus, weakened its upscale nature.
This article from the Boston Globe mentions Macy's as a middle-income retailer that's trying to attract upscale shoppers. Boston.com: Is middle-market Macy's ready to go uptown?
That same article then goes onto say, "Still, sales at existing Federated stores lag behind some of its competitors, including Kohl's and Nordstrom." So Macy's is unique in its position of attracting shoppers from all lifestyles.
The wording of the statement needs to be more clear, given the nature of department stores. --Write On 1983 04:09, 4 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
As a national chain, Macy's price level is still above Sears and JC Penney. Clipper471 04:15, 4 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Macy's prices are not any different than JC Penney or Sears. It is competing for the same customers as the other two stores, therefore its prices are on par with a middle-level department store. I will agree that Macy's flagship stores are not on par with mid-level stores, but Macy's has positioned itself in a few different categories, so to categorize the entire chain as above Sears and JC Penney is incorrect. --Write On 1983 04:26, 4 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I think the differences we're seeing comes from the Macy's conversion spree that Federated Department Stores is running through. Many stores, like the stores around here in Cincinnati, are definitely at a higher price point than Sears and Dillard's. Some stores around the country may still carry "legacy" products and price levels. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Janus657 (talk • contribs) 19:17, 5 March 2007 (UTC).[reply]
You are correct. So there needs to be a way to write that without blanketing it by saying Macy's is above others when it isn't in all areas. --Write On 1983 01:18, 6 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Are you residing in a traditional Macy's territory? That is, an area that had Macy's stores prior to the consolidation of all the older brands like Rich's and Bon Marche into Macy's? It sounds like you're not. In areas that have had Macy's stores for many decades (California, Ohio, New York, etc.), Macy's has always been positioned well above JCPenney and Sears but below Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus. I agree with Janus657; but I want to elaborate his/her point one step further by saying it sounds like you may be residing in one of the newer territories where Macy's has replaced an older, weaker brand like Rich's or Marshall Field's. --Coolcaesar 05:32, 7 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I wouldn't call the older brands "weaker," especially not Marshall Field's, Kaufmann's or Filene's. I do think, however, we need to associate a difference in the Macy's department store brands. They are catering to the same people who shop at Kohl's and JC Penney. If they were not, they wouldn't be doing national advertising on television. --Write On 1983 17:29, 14 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I completely disagree with those who say that Macy's is only on par with Kohl's, Pennys, Sears, etc. The closest Macy's to where I live is at the Lehigh Valley Mall, and it is very different from it's so-called competitors. For example, other department stores carry basic brand name watches such Citizen and Timex, while Macy's carries Lacoste, Diesel, Gucci, Coach, Burberry, and even Tag Heuer. Also they have a more substantive selection of upper-end brand names like Polo Ralph Lauren, while "competitors" have private labels. I even recall seeing Lacoste polos. In general they carry products that could loosely be referred to as luxury, and everything has a much more upscale atmosphere to it. Then again, it could have something to do with location. Stores such as Lord and Taylor, Nordstrom, Bloomingdale's, and Neiman Marcus are an hour away. Overall, I would call Macy's an upscale department store —Preceding unsigned comment added by 64.9.41.218 (talk) 01:28, 29 December 2007 (UTC)[reply]


Macy's had different classifications for its stores depending on physical square footage and the market it is in.

Flagship: These stores are larger, usually above 200,000 sq. ft. These stores usually have all of the private brands and higher designer brands. These stores also have more services. For instance these stores offer Personal Shopping, some have restaurants, and specialty departments like "The Fur Vault". There is at least one flagship per major market. These are not main flagships like 34th ST, Union Square, State St. or Perimeter.

Macy's Best: These stores are a lot of times smaller than flagships and do not offer a lot of the services. These are qualified as "best" stores because they have a better selection than their peers. They carry more designer brands and carry higher caliber private labels.

Level 1: Carries private labels and basic designer selection. These stores will not have all the specialty services or departments that a flagship has. These stores also do not carry as many of the designer brands as a flagship. Some Level 1s are "best" stores.

The scale goes down to level 4.

A flagship or best store is very similar to a Nordstrom. The stores I worked at, Macy's La Cantera and Macy's North Star's selection rivaled Nordstrom. Thisisit (Macy's Young Men's and Juniors Dept) is very similar to Nordstrom's "The Rail" (Young Men's) and Bp (Juniors). They are similar not just in selection but also in architecture depending on what location you are at. 72.179.186.100 (talk) 09:51, 12 February 2008 (UTC)MRO Former May Co. and Federated Employee 2/12/0872.179.186.100 (talk) 09:51, 12 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Lord & Taylor is defined as a mid-range store, which it is. With all the cheap Chinese rubbish Macy's push, I don't think that those I've heard complaining that Macy's is nothing more than an upscale K Mart are far off the mark. Just because it isn't as sad as Kohl's or JC Penney, doesn't make it mid- to upper-range. Macy's is a low- to mid-range store. Until I see the likes of Hickey Freeman or Allen Edmonds in their men's department, that's were I'll insist they are. I'm not changing it because there seems to be a consensus here, for some reason. But I'm adding my two cents as someone who's shopped mostly Nordstrom and Brooks Brothers over the past decade and understands that quality is rarely found in Macy's--let alone a Made in US/UK/Canada label.mp2dtw (talk) —Preceding undated comment added 03:45, 27 September 2011 (UTC).[reply]

Hello everyone! I'm a first time editor in Wikipedia so I would like to help you guys and have some fun! I'm a Sales associate in one of the Macy's New Jersey stores for over a year in Housewares and in the Bed & Bath Dept. From what I've learned from training, experience and from my other coworkers Macy's Inc considers any big box, dept store it's competition. The company does not necessarily care if its a low tier( Wallmart, K Mart, ect ), mid tier ( Sears, Kohl's, JCPenny, ect), high tier ( Saks Fifth Ave, Niman Marcus, ect) or off-price retail dept stores ( Marshalls, TJ Maxx, ect) or niche specialty stores like Gap, Pier 1, Old Navy, ect. Even online mega stores like Amazon.com is considered competition.

Macy's competition is also affected locally as well. For example in my dept Housewares/Bed and Bath the competition is Bed Bath and Beyond, Christmas Tree Shops, Wallmart, Ect. But in the South East a Macy's Housewares/Bed and Bath competition would be Wallmart, Target, TJ Maxx, Marshals, ect or a regional dept store like Belk.

Therefore Macy's competition is varied from many tier points and is varies by location. I hope this helps!--November G (talk) 21:22, 11 April 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Statistics errors[edit]

The flagship store moved uptown to Herald Square at 34th Street and Broadway in 1902. Beginning with one building, and through expanded new construction or merging, eventually it grew into the world's largest department store, 152.15 million ft² (14.1 km²)of selling floor and an additional 72 million ft² (6.7 km²) restaurant. They also have recently expanded to 1 billion ft² (93 km²) which houses shoes and other women things. (Some claim that the GUM store is Moscow, Russia is larger.) Macy's now occupies the entire block from 7th Avenue to Broadway and 34th to 35th Streets -- except for one small brownstone on the corner of 34th and Broadway, which remains a separate property, though rented by Macy's annually for a legendary figure, and camouflaged with giant signs.

The statistics shown in this paragraph are completely crazy. Do you realize just how large 152.15 million ft² (14.1 km²) actually is? Let alone it being expanded to 1 billion ft² (93 km²), or a 72 million ft² (6.7 km²) restaurant (meant to accomodate the whole of New York's population having dinner together, I guess). The whole island of Manhattan is some 640 million ft² (59.5 km²), and the whole Empire State Building's gross floor area amounts to some 2.2 million ft²; which means this article is claiming that Macy*s at Herald Square before expasion occupied an area equivalent to about 1/4 of Manhattan or some 70 times the floor space of the Empire State. That's to say, Macy*s should have supposedly occupied a colossal skyscraper raising to a height of some 1,500 floors over its entire block, dwarfing the Empire State by comparison, and that, far from content with their gargantuan department store, they decided to expand it to over 6 times that. Being a skyscraper fan, I'm really eager to discover Macy*s little 9,000-floor 20-mile-high Shopaholic Paradise Tower majestically crowning New York's skyline, or did I miss it because it's hidden as an underground shopping megalopolis? Uaxuctum 17:25, 28 Sep 2004 (UTC)

Why don't you make the fixes? (NB: I wasn't the one responsible for these figures.) --Lukobe 18:29, 28 Sep 2004 (UTC)
Well, what do you think? Simply because I don't know the actual correct data, which was precisely what I was looking for when I looked up this article. The given data are very obviously wrong by one or two orders of magnitude. At Macy*s website they only show a picture of that big sign on the façade of their store claiming it to be the biggest in the world, but don't offer the statistical data to support that claim (or at least I couldn't find them). Googling around I've only found this: http://www.federated-fds.com/retail/mae_1_3.asp (Macy*s East - Number of Stores: 95 - Total Gross Sq. Ft.: 23.089 million), which doesn't specify the shopping space of the Herald Square store, but makes clear that it's way smaller than the 152 million (let alone 1 billion) ft² data in this article. Uaxuctum 13:51, 30 Sep 2004 (UTC)
Found it. Edit by user 68.72.127.149 at 01:21 on 18 Mar 2004 changed "with 198,500 sq. m. (2.15 million sq ft) of selling floor" into that absurdity of "152.15 million sq ft of selling floor and an additional 72 million square foot restaurant". Google finds the first figure confirmed at the Guinness's website: (http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/content_pages/record.asp?recordid=49581 "Largest Department Store: Macy's, an 11-story building occupying an entire block in Herald Square, New York City, USA, covers an area of 198,500 sq. m. (2.15 million sq ft)". Another absurdity ("They also have recently expanded to 1 billion sq ft which houses shoes and other women things") was added by user Yohoboq at 09:04 on 24 Mar 2004. I'm reverting those two edits and restoring the correct figure. Uaxuctum 23:45, 30 Sep 2004 (UTC)

Too many states listed[edit]

"Macy's has 431 stores in Alabama, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming."

Wouldn't it be easier to list which states don't have Macy's in them? I think the better sentence would be "Macy's has 431 stores in Guam, Puerto Rico, and the United States with the expection of (put states names here)." Hyad 00:22, July 19, 2005 (UTC)

I agree, and it might even serve Federated leadership well to highlight (the few) untapped markets for the company. Like Arkansas, where we only have David's Bridal from the company. Also, after searching on the Federated site today, it appears that Macy's currently does not operate in Louisiana, where it had stores in the New Orleans metro area. It's likely a result of the hurricane damage, but I don't know at present of plans to re-establish operations. ArkansasTraveler 00:31, November 19, 2005 (UTC)

Writing style[edit]

As a general comment, I believe the writing style and organization of this article could be improved. Most prominently, it reads like a narrative rather than an encyclopedia article. Anyone else agree? Ithacagorges 05:03, July 30, 2005 (UTC)

I have reshuffled the text in an attempt to make the article more readable. I have also added an intro because that was missing. Rl 08:21, 30 July 2005 (UTC)[reply]
It could also use some citations to support some of its weird assertions, such as the idea that the star comes from a tattoo on Mr. Macy. But there are too many other cool things I'm already researching for Wikipedia, so someone else will have to take care of that. --Coolcaesar 11:31, 17 November 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, and what exactly does "though Macy's rents it annually for a legendary sum" actually mean???

Name change to "Macy*s"[edit]

What is with changing the article name from "Macy's" to "Macy*s"? The use of an asterisk in the name is wildly nonstandard and a ridiculous indulgence of the corpration's vanity. They don't even bother to do it on their own website except in their logotype. Are we now to heed every requirement of every corporation to use whatever typographical fetish that strikes them? No publisher not on the Macy's payroll would even think of writing "Macy*s". It's ridiculous, especially without discussion and marked as minor. I say change it back. --Tysto 17:29, 3 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

  • Support changing it back to Macy's, agree with Tysto. Gene Nygaard 18:02, 3 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
  • Support changing it back as well. Lukobe 18:39, 3 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
  • Support changing it back as well, with "Macy*s" redirecting to "Macy's" in the same manner that Wal*Mart redirects to "Wal-Mart." ArkansasTraveler 19:38, 3 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Ha! Macy*s has long been an example of what not to do at Wikipedia:Manual of Style (trademarks), but I see it has already been corrected. Dragons flight 21:55, 4 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I noticed that someone from IP address 24.46.171.247 replaced all occurances of "Macy's" to "Macy*s". I changed them back. I'm not sure if this was vandaism. The individual also added other relevant content.--Janus657 01:47, 14 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Merge in "Macy's Florida"[edit]

Macy's Florida is currently a small separate article that I consider worth merging into the main Macy's article. My rationale is that there is already an article for Burdines, the predecessor organization, plus this is part of a large number of brands that will be changing to or have already changed to the Macy's name. I think that the merge would be a very simple job, too. Thoughts? SchuminWeb (Talk) 15:12, 27 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I think that Macy's Florida should remain a separate article because all the other divison have there own article and most of the historical nameplates are on a separate article also. I think just to leave the article just the way it is. Bucs2004 (Talk) 13:02, 27 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Nah, all other divisions have their own page... 23:25, 26 May 2006 (UTC)OtherPerson
Fair enough. I didn't realize that there were separate articles for each Macy's division. That needs work, then... SchuminWeb (Talk) 18:50, 27 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]
now you can merge in Macy's Florida

Federated/May Merger[edit]

Since all of the former May Department Stores chains are currently transitioning to Macy's. Should we change all of the shopping malls articles that have a Famous-Barr, Filene's, Foley's, Hecht's, Kaufmann's, The Jones Store, L.S. Ayres, Meier & Frank, Marshall Field's, Robinsons-May, or Strawbridge's to Macy's or should we wait until the name changing becomes final in September? Bucs2004 03:44, 22 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

No, we keep the old brands as separate articles but make it clear that they are now part of history. See Liberty House for an example. We do not need to merge that much stuff into this article (which is getting too long). --Coolcaesar 18:55, 6 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Controversy[edit]

First, does this warrant its own topic (particularly one of several paragraphs) over what eventually developed into nothing more than a local public relations problem? Second, recent edits removed an apology from Ron Klein and inserted an earlier quote from a lower-ranked person and a critical comment from the local ACLU director -- the edits seemed intended to paint Macy's in a worse light than may be warranted (particularly removal of the apology). croll 21:32, 5 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Edited the section and added some citations which were absent.croll


Since most the information in this section relates to different Macy's Divison, I feel that this "Controversy" piece should be split into different sections. For Example the part dealing with how Macy's dealt suspected shoplifters should be in the Macy's East article since in took place in New York. Also the Marshall Field's related actions should be placed within Macy's North. Controversy relating to Macy's as a whole (Federated Department Stores) should only be in this area.(MortalConviction 16:27, 1 March 2007 (UTC))[reply]

I couldn't disagree more. The shoplifter controversy regards nationwide Federated policy and actions. There was no special Macy's East policy regarding shoplifters. It was addressed in New York because the environment there was more conducive to cracking down on corporate crimes (due to Eliot Spitzer). If you start saying that it should be put in the most specific possible unit, that's pretty much hiding it from anyone who might be interested. Now, I'd understand if this stuff were moved to Federated Department Stores and replaced with a link to a controversy section of that article, but deleting the controversies and putting them in an obscure article is inappropriate. This information deserves its due weight. Calbaer 17:30, 1 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Is the Phishing scam notable? I get these all the time in my junk email from all sorts of chain stores. I'll remove it pending some cites Alastairward (talk) 10:02, 9 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What's up with Macy's new logo?[edit]

Am I the only one noticing it? I'm not too serious, but hmmmm. A red star?

Macy's logo has always been the red star. Bucs2004 00:41, 25 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I concur. They have always had a red star somewhere in their logo. I think it has moved around a bit though. --Coolcaesar 17:00, 25 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]
"Inspired by thered star tattoed on his armin tribute to the star that guided him when lost at sea Macy replaces his original store's trademark rooster with what is now one of the most recognizeable retail marks of all time: the Macy's red star." Milestones of company from website Sfcollegeguy 08:43, 23 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Vandalism?[edit]

Macy's seems to have a clear clase of vandalism right now - someone inserted "Macy's is owned by shady records" in the beginning, although when I go to edit the HTML, the code that comes up doesn't contain this. I'm relatively new at editing Wikipedia articles, and I don't know how to fix it, but it clearly needs fixing! 128.95.170.233 18:13, 25 October 2006 (UTC)Steve G in Seattle[reply]

OK, it's gone away. 128.95.170.233 18:16, 25 October 2006 (UTC)Steve G in Seattle[reply]

Date for branch stores[edit]

The article states that the first branch stores built by Macy's New York weren't until the 1980's, but the branch store at Colonie Center (near Albany) NY opened in 1966. Albany isn't considered part of the NY metro area by any stretch of the imagination, so something needs to be fixed here. --Snarkivist 19:12, 23 December 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Fair use rationale for Image:Macy'slogogg.gif[edit]

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Why the hell was this moved?[edit]

  • Some newbie with the username Dirtyharry [This was User:Dirtyharry667 at 22:11, 14 July 2007: Anthony Appleyard 12:18, 15 July 2007 (UTC)] moved this article to Macy's department store without bothering to raise the issue here first. I'm moving it back right now! There is NO REASON to disambiguate under Wikipedia's common name policy because Macy's the department store is ALREADY the most common thing which speakers of the English language associate with the word Macy's.[reply]
If you disagree, please explain here first before moving the article. --Coolcaesar 21:43, 11 July 2007 (UTC)[reply]
  • Why the hell was this moved is because you are a moron. Macy's is a DIVISION of Macy's Inc., the parent company. The parent company has a different history and was the PURCHASER OF MACYS DEPARTMENT STORE. If you had any BRAINS WHATSOEVER you would know that the parent is listed first and the division is listed after the parent company. In this case, both are called Macys, hence there needs to be a disambiguation.
Of course I realize you are a dumbass and don't know squat thats why I no longer waste my time contributing here. 22:10, 14 July 2007 User:65.60.242.218
Well, I quite agree with Coolcaesar and reverted the undiscussed and controversial move -- the department store, to my mind, is pretty clearly the primary topic here. The disambiguation note at the top of the page explains the relation with the parent company and easily allows people to get to that article. older ≠ wiser 12:47, 15 July 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I concur with older-wiser. There is no need for a disambiguation under the common name policy; that's the whole point of it. Macy's the department store is the most common thing associated with the name "Macy's," therefore, the article with the title Macy's should cover the department store. The common name policy says nothing about having to reflect a company's existing corporate hierarchy. Anyway, the parent was previously called Federated Department Stores and it's now called Macy's Inc., so there is no need to disambiguate from that. Disambiguation is necessary only when two things have the exact same name (byte-for-byte), but the parent itself was never' called just Macy's. --Coolcaesar 05:42, 16 July 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I am challenging a recent edit by User:LTSLTS[edit]

User:LTSLTS recently inserted an awful photo of the Macy's West flagship store in San Francisco. The alleged subject of the image is mostly obscured by two palm trees, a crowd on the sidewalk, a cargo van, and a crowd of people. Plus the subject was photographed from over a block away from an awful off-center angle. Looks like LTSLTS flunked Photography 101 or was trying to shoot from a moving tour bus or cable car (never a good idea unless you really know what you're doing). I agree that there should be a Macy's West photo in this article, which is why I am replacing User:LTSLTS's photo with my own, which was removed by some other user over a year ago.

So I'm identifying two major issues here: (1) should there be a photo of the Macy's West store in this article at all, and (2) if so, whose photo. If anyone wants to challenge me on this issue, I am happy to debate the matter (and to take it to ArbCom if necessary). --Coolcaesar 09:25, 18 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Macy's Brands[edit]

Maybe we can get a list of Macy's store brands? (i.e. I.N.C.) I came on to look for men's brands. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 161.38.223.245 (talk) 12:11, 7 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I think Alfani is another Macy's clothing brand, but I'm not sure. Since anyways, lol, I've only gone into Macy's stores a handful of times, since all the former May stores were converted into Macy's. Not to mention, Frango mints seem to be the only thing that still attracts me into Macy's/ex-Field's stores anymore..... :D —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.80.91.114 (talk) 02:56, 14 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I am a former Macy's Employee for the Macy's South Division. According to page 16 of the Macy's Introduction Book given to employees at the time of the merger, there are 15 private labels.

These are:

Alfani American Rag Charter Club Club Room First Imoressions Green Dog Hotel Collection I-N-C International Concepts JM Collection John Ashford Material London Style & Co Taso Elba The Cellar Tools of the Trade

These are the major private label. There is also Macy's Holiday Lane, which is a line of Christmas Decor and Bella Cucina house household appliances. 72.179.186.100 (talk) 09:37, 12 February 2008 (UTC)MRO 2/12/08[reply]

Failed GA[edit]

Remove the trivia and convert it to prose. --Rschen7754 (T C) 05:31, 26 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Store Closings[edit]

It should be known in the article that some Macy's stores are closing down in Indiana, Louisiana, three stores in Ohio, two in Texas and one in Utah. 75.16.158.120 (talk) 02:32, 3 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Dispute of deletion of comments regarding red star[edit]

Macy's has starting using the red star as their logo, why is this vandalism and not a fact. If anything a portion of this article should recognize that a red star is used by our fellow socialist Wikipedians as their symbol, as well as the insightful Macy's corporate people.

Response: The red Macy's star has been around since the 1850's when Roland Macy opened his first store in New York. Mr. Macy was a sea captain who became lost at sea and thought he was lost until a star appeared in the skies above him. He used that star to steer, and it guided him back to land. Once there, he had a star tatooed on his arm to keep that memory alive. He adopted the red star as a symbol for Macy's and it has been around ever since. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.23.85.90 (talk) 21:32, 17 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What about New Haven, CT[edit]

It seems the author(s) was not aware, or had forgotten, that for many years there was a Macy's store in downtown New Haven,CT.

Please make appropriate changes.

Thanks,

Mark Nickatmartinis (talk) 21:00, 14 April 2008 (UTC)Nickatmartinis, April 14, 2008[reply]


Edit: Here's a quote from http://www.deadmalls.com/malls/chapel_square_mall.html:

"On the next block over, the city [New Haven] was fortunate to secure the first urban Macy's branch location out of NYC. It also was three floors and was connected to Malley's over George Street with another glass skywalk. Malley's opened in 1962 and Macy's in 1964, and then the Chapel Square Mall was opened in 1967."

And more importantly for you Wiki folks, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chapel_Square_Mall:

"The mall [Chapel Square Mall, New Haven] was designed by New York Architects, Lathrop Douglas with two levels and 165,000 square feet. It was anchored by two adjacent department stores: the New Haven-based Edward Malley Company, (1962-1981) (which was relocated here from where Chapel Square's office tower and Omni Hotel are now located), and a large branch of New York City-based, Macy's, (1964-1993). Both were built at earlier stages in the development." —Preceding unsigned comment added by Nickatmartinis (talk • contribs) 20:54, 14 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Virginia stores before May/Hects merger?[edit]

From 1988 to 1992, R. H. Macy & Co., Inc.'s Macy's South division was also headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with stores in Alabama, Georgia, Virginia, South Carolina, Florida, Louisiana and Texas operating as Macy's...

What stores were these? I had never known about any stores in VA before the conversion of hects in 2007. Perhaps there may have been a few that had spread from the DC area, but those wouldn't have been apart of Macy's South wuld they? (when the DC stores weren't). Macy's south was largely derived from Davison's (with the exception of the FL, LA, TX and probably AL stores), and those did not come into VA.Eric B (talk) 23:09, 30 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Two stores were opened in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, DC in the late 1980s. Originally developed by the New Jersey division, the stores (one in Pentagon City, one in Springfield) were opened and operated after the NY/NJ merger by Macy's East. Mweisenfeld (talk) 20:24, 5 January 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Request for article[edit]

Chicago/Field's controversy[edit]

This line seems a little POV and factually incorrect: Each week protesters gather outside Marshall Field's landmark store at 111 North State Street to solicit support for Marshall Field's return and millions of once loyal shoppers are simply shopping elsewhere.

Thousands are shopping elsewhere? Sure. Millions? Nah. 66.243.23.37 (talk) 17:38, 10 October 2008 (UTC)[reply]

add[edit]

How about mentioning that Macy's is jc penney's biggest rivals —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.90.29.229 (talk) 23:01, 7 June 2009 (UTC)[reply]

The world's largest store[edit]

Shinsegae Centum City in Busan, South Korea is now registered as the world's largest department store in the Guinness World Records. http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2009/06/26/2009062600718.html --Intershark (talk) 02:58, 28 June 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you. I have added this reference to the article to back up the now-historical claim that Macy's used to be the largest. Certes (talk) 18:59, 28 June 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Environmental Record[edit]

Is it just me or does the Environmental Record section smack of activism?

Now I'm not terribly familiar with the policies on Wikipedia, so it could be that that is just fine and dandy, but it seems undesirable to me. Or I could just be misreading it, I suppose. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 200.12.228.19 (talk) 23:55, 9 October 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Agree It's an atrocity of editing. Thought about deleting it, because it is so blatantly blasé I like to saw logs! (talk) 04:12, 7 December 2009 (UTC).[reply]

Thanksgiving section[edit]

The section states that Thanksgiving being on the fourth Thursday of Novemeber being down to Macy's and provides a corporate website to back this up. However, http://www.archives.gov/legislative/features/thanksgiving/ states that FDR was the one concerned about this and made the change. Any idea how to approach this? raseaCtalk to me 21:04, 6 December 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Take a look at the article about Lazarus (Fred Lazarus, Jr., who is alleged to have noticed, alarmed, that there would be a Thanksgiving on the 5th Thursday every once in awhile. How or why would FDR have known or cared if it wasn't for the powerful lobbying of a major retail store owner? Did FDR lay up at night thinking of profits for Christmas, or did Lazarus? The logical story is that Lazarus was the one, although he may be taking more credit if indeed he wasn't the first to put 2 and 2 together. If nothing else, Lazarus said he was the man with the plan and FDR was convinced by him.
Also, the Fred Lazarus, Jr. article should be linked whenever mentioning the 4th Thursday for Thanksgiving. Maybe link to him in the main Macy's article. I like to saw logs! (talk) 03:49, 7 December 2009 (UTC)[reply]
I notice there's no reference to what is, arguably, quite a significant claim. How would FDR had known? He'd have looked at a calendar. Why whould he care? Because it's his economy. Even Bush Jr. would have noticed the economic stupidity of a later Thanksgiving. Did FDR...think of Christmas profits? Most certainly - his country was in the middle of a great economic downturn. I think we need either a better reference than a corporate website or change it in keeping with what the national archives say. raseaCtalk to me 08:40, 7 December 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Hi[edit]

They Should pout. They Should Put The Thingy They Sell.

66.131.190.6 (talk) 16:15, 11 May 2010 (UTC)[reply]

How Com This Was Moved[edit]

{Reply} 

I Do Agree With Cool Caesarr.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.131.190.6 (talk) 16:23, 11 May 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Error in Divisons[edit]

"All store divisions nationwide were also served by two administrative divisions, prior to February 2009: Macy's Corporate Marketing headquartered in New York, responsible for overall activity on initiatives implemented to support the company's focus on Marketing. Macy's Merchandising Group, headquartered in New York, responsible for conceptualizing, designing, sourcing, and marketing private label and private branded goods sold at Macy's and managing core vendor relationships in the domestic branded market." This is wrong as Macy's Corporate Marketing still operates under the name Macy's Marketing (name was changed after Feb. 2009) and Macy's Merchandising Group STILL IS OPERATING NO CHANGE THERE —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.190.57.52 (talk) 22:33, 18 January 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Macy's is NOT upscale[edit]

Why do people keep trying to change this article to say that Macy's is upscale. Upscale? Ha! Maybe if you usually shop at Kmart. Macy's is the quintessential midrange American department store. Anyone who has a brain stem that is connected and has actually functioned at some point in society would know this, unless you're so poor that shopping at Macy's for $50 jeans is "treating yourself"... then maybe it would feel upscale to you. Macy's is in a unique position that they can attract both affluent customers and blue collar workers, but overall, the store is very middle class. I will admit that unlike most department stores, Macy's product assortments vary widely by store location, depending on whether it's a store in Fairfield County or in rural Nebraska. So certainly some Macy's are more "upscale" that others. But the whole chain described as upscale? Nordstrom is upscale. Bloomingdale's is upscale. Saks and Neiman's are so luxurious the word "upscale" is an understatement. It's laughable that in the opening of this article people are trying to say one of Macy's main competitors is Neiman Marcus. Hardly. People who routinely shop at Neiman Marcus probably rarely even set foot inside a Macy's. What's even funnier is on the Lord & Taylor page, someone keeps trying to change its description from "upscale" to midmarket. Macy's upscale and Lord & Taylor as midrange? Do you people editing Wikipedia even have any social IQ at all? In what possible world is Lord & Taylor "below" Macy's? Macy's is definitely above JCPenney, Sears, and Kohl's, but definitely below Neimans, Saks, Nordstrom, Bloomingdale's, Lord & Taylor, and Von Maur. The store that is most like Macy's is Dillard's, and based on their target customers and merchandise they carry, is Macy's biggest competitor. Anyone who disagrees clearly has no familiarity with product quality, brand recognitions, or the accepted social reputations of stores. Seriously. Next you're going to start telling me JCPenney is upscale. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Aef711 (talk • contribs) 05:27, 20 November 2011 (UTC)[reply]

I agree. Citing one magazine article about an attempt to use a small part of one store to sell upscale items does not make Macy's a mid- to upscale retailer. It makes it a mid-level retailer that sells a few expensive things at one location. Macy's also sells some very low-end items. That doesn't make it a lower-end retailer. It makes it a mid-level retailer that sells a few really cheap things. mp2dtw (talk) 21:40, 10 September 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Recent firing of Natalie Johnson.[edit]

I decided to place this in the Controversy section of the article. The reason being is simply due to the fact that this story has come under fire in both the LGBT community and the Christian community.

To make a long story short, this woman was fired to violating Macy's LGBT policy. I've already placed the reference link in the article. --99.108.248.29 (talk) 07:40, 12 December 2011 (UTC)Hypo-Allergenic Jin[reply]

Empire of Dreams[edit]

The "Empire of Dreams" reference isn't linking correctly. Instead of linking within Wikipedia to the novel, it links to a Star Wars movie.69.150.74.192 (talk) 14:08, 13 May 2013 (UTC)[reply]

External links modified[edit]

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375k an incredible sum at the time?[edit]

It states that the equivalent is 10 million so in what sense, for purchasing a large building, was 375k "incredible?" For example, even in the mid 19th century, steam ships were built for 100s of thousands of dollars. I think omitting the editorial comment is better, just leave the equivalent value.--Jrm2007 (talk) 00:16, 20 August 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Macy's Change in Leadership[edit]

Hi there! Hal Lawton is still listed as Macy's President under key people, but he stepped down in 2019 (reference here from cnbc https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/05/macys-president-hal-lawton-resigns-to-become-ceo-of-tractor-supply.html). In his place Jeff Gennette should be added. His title is Chairman and CEO (reference here from Bloomberg https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/person/16385812). Please note, I'd like to disclose that my place of work is connected with Macy's so wanted to discuss the changes here vs. making them myself. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Aeyard (talk • contribs) 22:44, 19 February 2021 (UTC) Aeyard (talk) 22:49, 19 February 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Macy's History/Subsidiaries Edits[edit]

Hi there! Please see below for a few updates to Macy's history/subsidaries

  • In the section 1800s… the fact notes that “from the beginning the logo included a star.” That is not accurate. The branding emblem at the onset of the 1858 store was a Rooster. The red star did not appear to replace it until 1862. This is outlined in the book "History of Macy's of New York 1858-1919". It was written by Ralph M. Hower and published by Harvard University Press, Cambridge (Mass.), 1967.

Please note, I'd like to disclose that my place of work is connected with Macy's so wanted to discuss the changes here vs. making them myself.Aeyard (talk) 22:58, 19 February 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Macy’s in East Tennessee[edit]

Why are there only Macy’s in Middle and West Tennessee? 2600:1006:B1D2:978D:E049:A83:E67A:2CC5 (talk) 00:04, 1 June 2022 (UTC)[reply]

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