Macy’s 2020

[storewanderer]

when I say "call in" I mean they don't do much promotion, space or pizzazz--kind of a "Fiesta Ware and Pfaltzgraf" level (without any more stylish (Martha Stewart)/promotional stuff).

I agree with that. Nothing stylish about their home mix. But the stuff is functional and of very good quality. And it does not look like junk. But it does look perhaps boring. Too often the department is so empty/undermerchandised it looks like the place is halfway through a store closing sale (now is one of those times over on the kitchen side of it).

They also seem to keep inventory levels very low in the home category. The clearance stores have little to no home merchandise. Whenever I shop in that section the employee is always so bored, I get the impression the employee there only sees about 5 customers per shift.

But I think they could squeeze the limited number of stores into various parts of CA. They have done okay in a lot of areas that aren't really hard core Conservative like Phoenix, Las Vegas, Reno, etc. I don't expect significant further CA expansion to ever happen though. I think at this point they know better than to expand further much at all, let alone in CA. Though I think a store or two may not be out of the question at some point.

But they are finally going forward with a new store in Sioux Falls.
Also in 2022 they opened a replacement store in Orem, UT and a replacement store in Amarillo, TX (moved from an archaic looking leased building to an owned -former Sears- building).

[pseudo3d]

Macy's took over Broadway, closed it. They took over May Co there and now closing it. It seems like Macy's took over the competition destroyed them and now destroying themselves.

I wonder what is going to go into those buildings now? The area is a mixed bag of demographics of low to upper-mid. Target would definitely not move into there, Walmart already left and has been empty for awhile. I don't see any chain store that could possibly want to take these locations. It's prime real-estate but shrink would be way too high. The Walmart was successful but the shrink in the store was killing the profit.

Macy's West played an excellent Monopoly game in CA until Macy's West was dissolved in some restructure ~10 years ago ensuring that there was no way competition that would impact them (basically Dillard's) could get into any of the better malls with them. Sure, they let Dillard's play ball in a few joke locations (Stockton, Palmdale, and El Centro...) probably thinking Dillard's would never sign to those cities with awful reputations yet Dillard's did go there and is still open in all 3. Sometimes they let Gottschalk's go into a building since they knew Gottschalk's wasn't really that much of a threat and didn't have the money to become a serious threat.

And now this is what is faced. Because Macy's dominated the anchor spaces for so long ensuring no legitimate competitors could show up, and now Macy's is in downsizing mode getting rid of redundant stores, closing floors/space in low volume stores, etc. this is really hurting the malls. It is no longer worth going to a mall that has one poor Macy's in it. But it that mall had a Dillard's present in addition to the poor Macy's it would be more of a draw as Dillard's would draw some traffic too. Macy's West played a great Monopoly game over the years but if you are left holding properties that have no foot traffic because your store no longer draws in enough traffic on its own to keep the mall viable, what good is it now?

I always got the feeling that prior to the early 2000s when the Macy's rebranding was set into motion, Macy's West was way more downscale than what the East Coast Macy's was operating with.

Dillard's is the last vestiges of what department stores were--better-dressed salespeople, reasonably well merchandised stores...Macy's stores today aren't very well merchandised, and the stores and fixtures are almost worn-out as JCPenney.

The Toys R Us department I visited was pathetic in many ways. One of the tables they had merchandise on revealed a cheap fold-out table with tattered sides and a damaged surface, looking they bought it at auction from an elementary school.

[storewanderer]

I always got the feeling that prior to the early 2000s when the Macy's rebranding was set into motion, Macy's West was way more downscale than what the East Coast Macy's was operating with.

Dillard's is the last vestiges of what department stores were--better-dressed salespeople, reasonably well merchandised stores...Macy's stores today aren't very well merchandised, and the stores and fixtures are almost worn-out as JCPenney.

The Toys R Us department I visited was pathetic in many ways. One of the tables they had merchandise on revealed a cheap fold-out table with tattered sides and a damaged surface, looking they bought it at auction from an elementary school.

Definite opposite as I always heard the old Macy's East operation was a mid-tier store at best (back in the 90's I heard that before all of the mergers).

Macy's West (the CA operation specifically) was a solid middle-upper tier type of store. They were absolutely better than Sears, JCP, Mervyn's/Kohls, Montgomery Ward, or Gottschalk's in terms of more branded product, higher priced items, and a more polished looking store. In NorCal they were the premier department store operator in the 70's, 80's, 90's, into the 00's. In SoCal I am not so sure as there was more competition but my perception is they were also highly regarded in SoCal. Were they better than Broadway/Weinstocks/Emporium that they bought up? I would say it is a toss up- because those were larger stores, but somewhat dated/run down/catered more to older customers. Were they better than May? Absolutely. Better than Bullock's? Someone else will have to answer that, I don't really remember Bullock's. But thinking of all these department stores that used to be there and aren't anymore sure tells us what has happened to the department store business.

[Brian Lutz]

I don't know much about other operations they took over, but the general perception seems to be that they were a step down from The Bon Marche up in the Northwest.

[rwsandiego]

I don't know much about other operations they took over, but the general perception seems to be that they were a step down from The Bon Marche up in the Northwest.

Although Macy's now sells better merchandise in Chicago than it does elsewhere (including New York), they are a huge step down from Marshall Field's. The best way to describe Field's using contemporary stores is a cross between Dillard's, Nordstrom, and Bloomingdale's. Some of the change is not Macy's doing. Many of the lines they carried were exclusive to them in the Chicago market, but those exclusivity agreements terminated when the stores were purchased by Macy's. However, the downgrade in service and the erosion of higher-end brands was all Macy's. Even under Dayton's and May Company there was local control over the stores. If memory serves, buying was consolidated into either St Louis or Minneapolis and then those were consolidated with the rest of Macy's. Hubris and ego got in the way of Macy's making smart business decisions.

[lake52]

I'd estimate in NorCal for instance (in addition to the store they already have in Stockton) they could fit one store in a mature part of Sacramento, 3 in the bay area (one in Marin County/Santa Rosa, one around San Jose, and one near San Francisco), and that is probably about it for NorCal as I don't think Redding/Modesto would make sense (Redding is Redding and Modesto is too close to Stockton). Jury is out on Fresno/Bakersfield.

If they really wanted to move on Northern California, the space is mostly there per your list above.

Arden is still a strong mall and has the Nordstrom vacancy.

Serramonte is a very strong mall and has the JC Penney vacancy (JCP made a mistake closing this store and keeping Tanforan open)

Eastridge isn’t as strong of a mall as the two above but has a vacancy in an established San Jose neighborhood.

Northgate is an open door in Marin County as I’m sure the RH Outlet could be relocated.

All of these vacancies without Macy’s closures in malls that are still viable. I think the time has come and gone for Dillards to do this expansion, and I don’t think Macy’s is going to close too many more stores up here to make things more viable.

Of the remaining stores up in NorCal, I could see the following closures:

San Rafael
San Leandro
Newark
Fairfield
Tracy
Salinas
Santa Rosa (Coddingtown)
Citrus Heights
Redding

Maybe they could leave Stockton, Modesto, and Downtown Sacramento but none of the malls listed above would make an out-of-market competitor salivate about moving into Northern California.

[storewanderer]

If they really wanted to move on Northern California, the space is mostly there per your list above.

Arden is still a strong mall and has the Nordstrom vacancy.

Serramonte is a very strong mall and has the JC Penney vacancy (JCP made a mistake closing this store and keeping Tanforan open)

Eastridge isn’t as strong of a mall as the two above but has a vacancy in an established San Jose neighborhood.

Northgate is an open door in Marin County as I’m sure the RH Outlet could be relocated.

All of these vacancies without Macy’s closures in malls that are still viable. I think the time has come and gone for Dillards to do this expansion, and I don’t think Macy’s is going to close too many more stores up here to make things more viable.

Of the remaining stores up in NorCal, I could see the following closures:

San Rafael
San Leandro
Newark
Fairfield
Tracy
Salinas
Santa Rosa (Coddingtown)
Citrus Heights
Redding

Maybe they could leave Stockton, Modesto, and Downtown Sacramento but none of the malls listed above would make an out-of-market competitor salivate about moving into Northern California.

Serramonte would be a very good spot for Dillard's; it is a busy enough area I think it would be very attractive and at least as productive as the Stockton location is. I think they'd have some issues with women's clothing but could make up for it on the shoe/purse sales and men's would be solid for the area.

I go back and forth on Arden- what I really think needs to happen is Macy's get a larger store at Arden and close Downtown. But Macy's has put some money into Downtown recently (some new carpets and such) and I do not see it closing. But a larger Macy's would draw more people to Arden, so a Dillard's could work there. Dillard's is obviously not as upscale as Nordstrom, really, it would fit at Arden perfectly to replace the void left by Nordstrom. An enlarged Macy's and a potential Dillard's could really revive Arden (also would probably be the final death for Sunrise) but if neither happens I think Arden's days as a decent mall are numbered. If Sunrise was more alive I'd also say it would be a good Dillard's location (the area around it strikes me as one that has a lot of potential customers for Dillard's) but I think Sunrise is too far gone.

Regarding Macy's closures I broadly agree with your list though I wonder about Capitola. Also a Fairfield closure would really leave a big gap of no Macy's coverage but that store has pretty serious theft issues, I have never seen as much visible security as that one has (not even at Union Square). I am not sure which of those two Santa Rosa Macy's is in worse condition... one needs to go and whichever remains needs a very major remodel. Both of the Macy's in Marin County are not very high volume (I think Corte Madera is the lowest volume- might be about the lowest volume Macy's in CA at this point- maybe it outperforms Tracy); I have the same general comment there- one of those two needs to go and the other needs a major remodel though Corte Madera is in a little bit better shape. If Macy's were to close in Redding (condition isn't too bad there as it is a newer store- then again newer for a CA Macy's is anything past about 1985), that may work for Dillard's.

[Super S]

I don't know much about other operations they took over, but the general perception seems to be that they were a step down from The Bon Marche up in the Northwest.

The Bon Marche seemed a little more geared toward the working class and did a better job with variety in the stores. I am talking about a more broad selection of brands and sizes including big & tall and plus sizes. Prices were better too. Macy's seems to focus on a lot of higher-end/high-priced brand names that charge full MSRP, and is one of several stores that stock virtually nothing above a 2XL. Some of the bigger stores have enough square footage where they could make this work. It gets frustrating when I need certain clothes for work, can't find anything locally or in a larger city (Portland/Seattle) and have to mail order something as simple as a shirt hoping it will fit. I have had to deal with returns several times now and it is a pain.

I think there is room for a different department store in malls if they did a better job stocking more sizes in the stores.

[veteran+]

The opposite is true for smaller sizes.

Macy's in Rancho Mirage rarely stocks waist 28-30 with inseam of 32-34. They barely have even 32 waist.

Macy's West Hollywood and the main one in San Francisco stock excellent quantities of the above but few larger than XL.

[ClownLoach]

I really do think that it is too late for Dillard's to arrive in SoCal proper because of the damage inflicted on the malls by the near monopoly of Macy's. Their underwhelming selection, incompetent size management, and wild inconsistencies between locations soured customers on their stores, and as such their stores don't bring significant traffic to the entire mall now. Traffic is so poor outside of the few remaining "A" malls that Dillard's would be foolish to sign a lease or acquire a building in any of them. And the "A" malls don't have space for Dillard's. To make any meaningful arrival in SoCal they would need to get enough stores opened all at once to be able to market their presence and I just don't see that happening. They would be crazy to open in anything but "A" malls and the only way they would get space is if they could partner with Macy's to get them to free up a building. I don't see them working together as such activities could be considered anticompetitive by the FTC even though the end result would be introduction of new competition. I think Macy's has been holding out hoping they can sell duplicate buildings to non-traditional mall retailers, but those mall openings are drying up (movie theaters, Whole Foods, big fitness centers, Dicks Sporting Goods). Their decades of monopoly power are leading to their own demise. Unfortunately they are taking down a lot of malls with them.

The only way I see them arriving would be to get into smaller media markets and surround LA, expanding there last. Maybe if they were to enter San Diego County and Ventura/Santa Barbara... But again the properties they would work out in lack available space or are too far on the path to obsolescence (like the mall in Santa Barbara).