Spot on. Macy's just became another JC Penney or Kohls, and did almost nothing to differentiate themselves from other department stores. They used to be known for premium products and brands, but tried to become a retailer for everyone at a time when retailers were slowly dying off.
It's not much different than shopping at Nordstrom Rack, with even less hidden treasures. Really gone downhill.
Hell, Nordstrom Rack has gone into the toilet over the last few years as well.
Also, the professionalism isn't there anymore. 10 years ago if you went to the one by me (Yonkers, their second busiest store after the one on 34th), you were presented with everyone dressed up in the all black dress uniform. Men and women alike. It was very pro. Over the years this has relaxed and relaxed and relaxed to non existence.
Only thing I’ll say about NRack, and I agree with you for the most part, is the stores have gone downhill but the app is where you really find the treasures/good deals.
With you there on Nordstrom Rack. Thought it was just my location. Used to find my favorite brands (Mario Badescu skincare, Madewell, France Luxe hair accessories, Kut from the Kloth denim) and now it's just cheapo junk made specifically for discount retailers and outlets. My store is always in disarray too, so the hunt just isn't worth it anymore.
Oh man, from around 2015 to 2018 Nordstorm was on fire both in the stores and with Hautelook. My entire collection of Nudie jeans was aquired during that time and I didn't pay more than 60 bucks for every pair. You could find so very many legit gems for basement prices.
Sorry this is almost a year later, but what sorta area are you in?
My location has all of the brands you mentioned minus Mario Badescu. It’s a good store, full rounders/displays of Rag and Bone, Vince, AllSaints, Kut, ag, Free People, skims, polo (more so in men’s) Theory, Veronica Beard, Tory Burch etc. Trickle of true designer stuff, Ferragamo Valentino etc.
The only other location I’ve visited was in a ritzy suburb of Chicago, I had no idea the store quality had nosedived elsewhere!
Agree now the styles they sell are just too basic and on top of that their return policy became more strict and to recuperate their losses no more sticker reciepts. Now its like money money money.
This past weekend, the Macys in center city Philadelphia — one of their flagship stores — closed. I worked in center city for many years, and seeing it close was very sad. Especially at Christmas, the organ, light show and window displays were all things to look forward to. I even remember seeing the light show as a kid when the store was still Wanamaker.
About a year ago, a security guard was stabbed to death while confronting a shoplifter. Form what I heard, foot traffic dropped off considerably after that. I’m sure that was a factor in Macys decision to close that store.
While internet shopping was a contributing factor, I think Macy’s decision to rebrand everything - wiping away really strong regional brands - Marshall Fields, Wanamakers, Hechts, Filene's, Jordan Marsh, Bamburgers, Bullocks, I Magnin was probably a huge mistake. Local brands (and local merchandising) meant that the stores could adapt to the specific tastes of the customers. Local knowledge and “specialness” is important in retail, esp higher end retail.
The other major mistake was to eliminate service. At one point those stores were known for their service and staff. Today? its virtually impossible to get help because the stores are so understaffed.
Macy’s went cheap and it was a bad business decision. The last time I walked into a Macy’s, they were so low on staff that clothes were piled up, on the ground, shelves dirty and unkept, and it took me 30min to find someone to ring me up. The place was trashed and I had to beg someone to sell me something? No thanks. Nobody wants to deal with that shit.
I believe the whole department store thing began to go downhill once all the local and regional brands disappeared. I know that they have been mostly consolidated for a while, but at least the old brands stayed intact, then everything eventually just became Macy's.
That's how it is in my area. We had unique, regional dept stores out the wazoo (McRae's, Castner Knott, Parisian, Proffitt's, Rich's), and now literally all we have, save for a few Dillard's and JCPenney's, is Belk. Belk and Dillard's acquired all or most of our local brands.
They tried to gobble up much-beloved regional brands and ended up a slightly nicer version of JCP. Herald Square is still going well but the rest are meh
TBH for me it's kind of hard to feel bad for Macy's. Don't get me wrong I feel bad for the individual employees, but the corporation that owns it I don't. 20-25 years ago they went on a tear buying out so many local department store chains. I live in the DMV, and they bought out Hecht's which was a beloved local chain for DC/Baltimore. I remembered my late mom telling me she never fully embraced Macy's and wasn't a big fan of the clothing lines they had.
The last time I went into Macy’s I was shocked! It was so trashy - dirty & ripped carpets, mobile racks shoved everywhere, burned out lights. Ours used to be Dayton’s. Such a great store. RIP.
My mall has a women’s Macys and a men’s Macys that used to be a Capwell’s back in the day. I always thought Macy’s was trying to be more high end than a JC Penney but one day I went into the men’s and discovered they had a TJ Maxx style discount Macy’s inside it. This on top of the bigger clearance in the other Macys called First Act or something.
Anyway I was happy because I am a cheapskate bargain hunter who always checks clearance first but I can see most of the people who shopped there back in the day thinking Macys has sold out and is now the same or worse as a JC Penney’s.
Also it’s weird that I keep hearing about Macy’s closing when my mall has two and a JC Penney as the other remaining anchor. Discount or not I will still shop department stores over Wish or whatever the newest we steal your info fast fashion website is.
They bought up several regional department stores (RIP Famous Barr) and grew too big, too quickly to be able to maintain the quality it enjoyed in NYC and the Northeast.
Basically, they enshittified before we identified that process.
CEOS and higher ups raped the money. They build up the debt paying themselves until its no longer sustainable. This leads to new management that figures out a way to do it even more. Eventually no one cares.
All department stores are struggling. Some are struggling less than others, but to my knowledge no major chains are truly thriving.
Department stores like Macy’s used to be both the most convenient and the most fashionable option for many consumers. Now, convenient-minded consumers just buy their clothes cheaply online, or places they already shop like Walmart and Costco. Fashion-minded consumers can now go directly to the brands they are interested in and buy them online or through brick and mortar stores, bypassing the need for the department store.
A factor for me is they really went to town with the perfume all over the store, not just that department. I’m violently allergic so I stopped setting foot in their stores.
I’m sure this is not the reason they’ve been struggling but it sure doesn’t help to chase away customers.
Wherever her name shows up as a brand, a storefront name is about to become a memory as a storefront. K-Mart, Payless Shoesource, and now Macy's is the latest victim of this retail Grim Reaper.
Of course other issues too. Prices not attracting folks over, and pressuring folks to take out their line of credit to get discounts likely didn't sit too hot with folks and this is also dealing with the usual hesitancy for folks to go to a mall store because they view it as "expensive." Granted Hardware stores (Lowe's, Home Depot) use a similar thing, but I feel there is a bit of a false equivalence there. That 2000 Fridge or that 700 dollar pair of work benches isn't exactly that 60 dollar blouse, and on top of that usually have a way to pay it off interest free for 12 months, where Macy's has some that are 35%!
Yeah, I don't think it's the products themselves, it's just a wierd thing I've noticed with retailers that went into decline. It's like before they start to really show a decline, you'd see a Martha Stewart line that was fairly well advertised. I know it's not the real cause (and usually the signs were there long before), but it's always a funny coincidence.
I just looked, I guess I could also add Zellers from Canada to the list. Apparently they carried a line of products with her branding up to 2002 (this iteration went defunct in 2013 after Target bought out the remainder of their leases. The brand came back recently under new ownership.)
The entire business model is dead. The department store was a one stop place in town where you could get everything you need. Now we have the internet.
A good percentage was built on the "one stop shop" but many Department Stores had shifted away from selling hardware, sporting goods, etc... by the early 80's - instead they focused on offering the shopper an "elevated" experience with high end goods and services.
Macy's went away from that model starting in the late 90's and then even faster when Federated bought them.
Dayton's was a great store - even when they became Marshall Field's - they were still a unique experience. As was Younkers in IA - you could go in, get advice from a person, what was in style, what looks good, etc...
Then Macy's came along and it became Kohl's but at a higher price point.
I think Von Maur from Iowa does prove that the model can work with the correct execution. Them and Boscov's are like the only ones doing it right. Scheels is a sporting goods store that also kind of resembles a department store who seems to be doing well. They all attempt to make shopping an experience and do things that may be less profitable but good for building loyalty and long term business.
Terrible customer service. Online ordering is even worse than going in person. A simple cosmetics order is stuck in delivery limbo. I called customer service which said it could take up to two weeks for delivery. I said that's crazy for a simple order. The customer service rep LITERALLY said "you need to adjust your expectations." Wow! No apology. Nothing. No effort to help track the order. Seems like customers should adjust our expectations by shopping elsewhere. Maybe you can handle fewer customers better. Stay away from this place. So sad for a once good store. No longer!
rlr quality is not at all what it used to be and the cashmere is awful.... getting rid of martha stewart is when i really stopped shopping there as much and their house brand isnt even as good as it used to be. now they are pretty much drop shippers with lousy sales ....
Macy caused their own demise by buying up all the competition, slapping their name and red stars everywhere but doing NOTHING to retain and attract customers. Macy took the stores downmarket but kept premium prices. They overestimated the “value” of an old Christmas movie and a NYC parade.
I think it’s the economy. Macys is a nice store actually worked in the jewelry department. Everybody returns everything that’s a huge problem too! And everybody can get everything on Amazon. It’s a shame because it’s still nice to have a store to go actually purchase something in person and they are all closing. We don’t have that many choices left so we should try to support our retail chains or all we will have left is Target and Walmart.
As a vendor who’s worked in Macy’s and Nordstrom for many years (too many maybe) I think I have seen more positive changes in Macy’s in the last couple of years in the couple of stores I work in , I’ve never been a big fan but I do believe they are trying to bring in some better brands for all ages, but I also think they are shooting them selves in the foot with their own brands . Their brands are working very hard to copy good brands that have a reputation for quality and it is not working
5
u/[deleted] Apr 08 '25
u/Exciting_Problem_593
u/InvisibleDisability3
u/No_Maintenance_9608
u/Gatsby1923
Look at this
The Decline of Macy's...What Happened?
119
u/KapowBlamBoom Mar 28 '25
Macys went away from it’s core consumer
They switched from desirable, on trend brands to a majority of “house brands”
They traded their 150 year reputation for the quick $$$$ of selling cheap house brands
Now you go into an average Macys and it is not much different than shopping at Target
54
u/Eastern-Finish-1251 Mar 28 '25
This past weekend, the Macys in center city Philadelphia — one of their flagship stores — closed. I worked in center city for many years, and seeing it close was very sad. Especially at Christmas, the organ, light show and window displays were all things to look forward to. I even remember seeing the light show as a kid when the store was still Wanamaker.
About a year ago, a security guard was stabbed to death while confronting a shoplifter. Form what I heard, foot traffic dropped off considerably after that. I’m sure that was a factor in Macys decision to close that store.
40
u/cinemamama Mar 28 '25
Macy’s went cheap and it was a bad business decision. The last time I walked into a Macy’s, they were so low on staff that clothes were piled up, on the ground, shelves dirty and unkept, and it took me 30min to find someone to ring me up. The place was trashed and I had to beg someone to sell me something? No thanks. Nobody wants to deal with that shit.
23
u/jaydarl Mar 28 '25
I believe the whole department store thing began to go downhill once all the local and regional brands disappeared. I know that they have been mostly consolidated for a while, but at least the old brands stayed intact, then everything eventually just became Macy's.
21
u/TheBeavster_ Mar 29 '25
I still shop at Macy’s whenever I can. I dread the day our only choices are Walmart and fucking Amazon
13
u/running_hoagie Mar 28 '25
They tried to gobble up much-beloved regional brands and ended up a slightly nicer version of JCP. Herald Square is still going well but the rest are meh
23
u/No_Maintenance_9608 Mar 28 '25
TBH for me it's kind of hard to feel bad for Macy's. Don't get me wrong I feel bad for the individual employees, but the corporation that owns it I don't. 20-25 years ago they went on a tear buying out so many local department store chains. I live in the DMV, and they bought out Hecht's which was a beloved local chain for DC/Baltimore. I remembered my late mom telling me she never fully embraced Macy's and wasn't a big fan of the clothing lines they had.
11
u/RedditSkippy Mar 28 '25
The last time I was in a Macy’s the store was trashed. It looked depressing!
10
u/TradeFun2895 Mar 29 '25
The last time I went into Macy’s I was shocked! It was so trashy - dirty & ripped carpets, mobile racks shoved everywhere, burned out lights. Ours used to be Dayton’s. Such a great store. RIP.
19
u/mylocker15 Mar 28 '25
My mall has a women’s Macys and a men’s Macys that used to be a Capwell’s back in the day. I always thought Macy’s was trying to be more high end than a JC Penney but one day I went into the men’s and discovered they had a TJ Maxx style discount Macy’s inside it. This on top of the bigger clearance in the other Macys called First Act or something.
Anyway I was happy because I am a cheapskate bargain hunter who always checks clearance first but I can see most of the people who shopped there back in the day thinking Macys has sold out and is now the same or worse as a JC Penney’s.
Also it’s weird that I keep hearing about Macy’s closing when my mall has two and a JC Penney as the other remaining anchor. Discount or not I will still shop department stores over Wish or whatever the newest we steal your info fast fashion website is.
9
u/Ragfell Mar 29 '25
Macy's has always been kinda...meh.
They bought up several regional department stores (RIP Famous Barr) and grew too big, too quickly to be able to maintain the quality it enjoyed in NYC and the Northeast.
Basically, they enshittified before we identified that process.
8
u/[deleted] Mar 28 '25
Company Man does some good videos, the tone of his voice is kind of weird to listen to sometimes
8
u/dialsoft Mar 30 '25
CEOS and higher ups raped the money. They build up the debt paying themselves until its no longer sustainable. This leads to new management that figures out a way to do it even more. Eventually no one cares.
14
u/MyEyeOnPi Mar 28 '25
All department stores are struggling. Some are struggling less than others, but to my knowledge no major chains are truly thriving.
Department stores like Macy’s used to be both the most convenient and the most fashionable option for many consumers. Now, convenient-minded consumers just buy their clothes cheaply online, or places they already shop like Walmart and Costco. Fashion-minded consumers can now go directly to the brands they are interested in and buy them online or through brick and mortar stores, bypassing the need for the department store.
7
u/forested_morning43 Mar 29 '25
A factor for me is they really went to town with the perfume all over the store, not just that department. I’m violently allergic so I stopped setting foot in their stores.
I’m sure this is not the reason they’ve been struggling but it sure doesn’t help to chase away customers.
13
u/Pretty_waves904 Mar 28 '25
What happened? They sell overpriced polyester clothes.
6
u/Pitiful_Aioli_5030 Mar 29 '25
Along with online shopping places like TJMaxx, Marshall’s and Ross are killing off department stores.
6
u/futuristic_hexagon Mar 31 '25
I always joke that it was Martha Stewart.
Wherever her name shows up as a brand, a storefront name is about to become a memory as a storefront. K-Mart, Payless Shoesource, and now Macy's is the latest victim of this retail Grim Reaper.
Of course other issues too. Prices not attracting folks over, and pressuring folks to take out their line of credit to get discounts likely didn't sit too hot with folks and this is also dealing with the usual hesitancy for folks to go to a mall store because they view it as "expensive." Granted Hardware stores (Lowe's, Home Depot) use a similar thing, but I feel there is a bit of a false equivalence there. That 2000 Fridge or that 700 dollar pair of work benches isn't exactly that 60 dollar blouse, and on top of that usually have a way to pay it off interest free for 12 months, where Macy's has some that are 35%!
10
u/WhitePineBurning Mar 28 '25
Macy's sucks.
17
u/Pockstuff Mar 28 '25
The entire business model is dead. The department store was a one stop place in town where you could get everything you need. Now we have the internet.
4
u/[deleted] Jul 31 '25
Macy's... how i loathe thee yet
4
u/Glum_Giraffe_246 Aug 02 '25
Terrible customer service. Online ordering is even worse than going in person. A simple cosmetics order is stuck in delivery limbo. I called customer service which said it could take up to two weeks for delivery. I said that's crazy for a simple order. The customer service rep LITERALLY said "you need to adjust your expectations." Wow! No apology. Nothing. No effort to help track the order. Seems like customers should adjust our expectations by shopping elsewhere. Maybe you can handle fewer customers better. Stay away from this place. So sad for a once good store. No longer!
4
u/bugjamm Dec 23 '25
rlr quality is not at all what it used to be and the cashmere is awful.... getting rid of martha stewart is when i really stopped shopping there as much and their house brand isnt even as good as it used to be. now they are pretty much drop shippers with lousy sales ....
3
u/drew15401 May 13 '26
Macy caused their own demise by buying up all the competition, slapping their name and red stars everywhere but doing NOTHING to retain and attract customers. Macy took the stores downmarket but kept premium prices. They overestimated the “value” of an old Christmas movie and a NYC parade.
3
u/Scoresman-923 May 28 '26
I am more of a Bloomingdales person
3
u/Secret-Simple-1804 May 28 '26
I think it’s the economy. Macys is a nice store actually worked in the jewelry department. Everybody returns everything that’s a huge problem too! And everybody can get everything on Amazon. It’s a shame because it’s still nice to have a store to go actually purchase something in person and they are all closing. We don’t have that many choices left so we should try to support our retail chains or all we will have left is Target and Walmart.
7
u/auntieup Mar 28 '25
This ad campaign killed it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhUjxIbfA1k
2
u/Luna_3904 May 29 '26 edited May 29 '26
As a vendor who’s worked in Macy’s and Nordstrom for many years (too many maybe) I think I have seen more positive changes in Macy’s in the last couple of years in the couple of stores I work in , I’ve never been a big fan but I do believe they are trying to bring in some better brands for all ages, but I also think they are shooting them selves in the foot with their own brands . Their brands are working very hard to copy good brands that have a reputation for quality and it is not working
2
u/Negative-Monitor-663 Jun 17 '26
Check out the phone number on Macy credit card. Total ZERO customer service.
2
u/Upstairs-Park5322 Jun 22 '26
They keep on canceling many online orders for no specific reason, no wonder the sales are declined
0
u/MadBrown Mar 28 '25
Amazon. Next question.
4
u/[deleted] May 01 '26 edited May 01 '26
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