Macy's to Close 66 More Stores

[401don]

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/bu...n/77585767007/

Closing Oakland Mall with JC Penney probably not far behind may be the end of Oakland.

[Scottathew]

I hope that cities get it right when they redevelop these mall sites. They represent a HUGE opportunity in many cities that otherwise are fully developed.

It makes me sad to see them close, but at the same time I know that I simply don't go to malls anymore with any regular frequency.

[Lowell]

Mall to Pickle Ball? One creative reuse I recently saw was a pop-up pickleball facility. The former Tuesday Morning store in Farmington was converted into pickleball courts, capitalizing on the popularity of this trending sport over the past few years. Called Popup Pickle Ball the investment required had to be minimal.

All that was needed were painted court lines on the floors, a center net, and containment nets hung from the ceiling at either end of the courts. I estimate the cost to be around $1,000 to $2,000 per court. The space was buzzing with activity.

For more on the decline of Macy’s and its impact, this from the Free Press...

The Macy's store at Oakland Mall in Troy — which first opened as a Hudson's store in the late 1960s — is set to close along with three other stores in Michigan.

Macy's has plans to close its stores at Lakeside Mall in Sterling Heights, the Genesee Valley Center in Flint Township, and the Grand Traverse Mall in Traverse City in northern Michigan.

Lakeside Mall in Sterling Heights closed July 1, 2024, but the Macy's there, Macy's and Macy's Men's & Home, had remained open. A new development called the Lakeside Town Center — a town-square-type project with apartments, new retail, restaurants, offices, a hotel and public recreation — is planned for the spot. As reported in the Detroit Free Press in June, the Macy's and J.C. Penney department stores were expected to anchor the new development.

[DTWflyer]

Not surprised. I was in the area back in December and stopped in the Dicks Sporting Goods and walked through the mall and was shocked how dead it is these days.

It will be interesting to see what happens as that whole area of Troy along I-75. You have dying Oakland Mall on life support and high-vacancy office buildings long the west side of I-75.

It is in what should be a highly desirable area for some type of redevelopment.

[401don]

Not surprised. I was in the area back in December and stopped in the Dicks Sporting Goods and walked through the mall and was shocked how dead it is these days.

I'm sure Dick's got a sweetheart lease to move from the plaza across the street a couple of years ago. I was in JC Penney's last year and wanted to buy a pillow. There was no cashier open on the lower level and the escalator was broke. I carried the pillow out to the staircase in the mall and walked upstairs and paid for it.

[Warrenite84]

So sad to hear this. I grew up going to Oakland Mall with my parents. When this Macy's location was Hudson's, we would go to the Rainbow store [[budget Hudson's pre Target), to shop.
I used to work at York Steakhouse washing dishes, bussing tables, and a grill cook. The food was excellent and far from what malls offer now. The last York Steakhouse is in Columbus, OH. Still good.
I also worked at Hudson's Oakland Mall in the mid 80's to early 90's. I worked in package pickup. Met my future wife there who worked at the Swatch counter and costume jewelry. Lot of nice people there and great memories! We still hang out with friends we made there. That was a crazy place during the Santabear promotions after Thanksgiving. So busy!

[1953]

Reading Macy's Wikipedia page, they have not been very successful as a retail company for some time. They have tried multiple strategies and closed many stores over the past decades. My gut, and experience in their stores, tells me that what they need is to focus on being good at what they do, rather than trying to come up with new gimmicks. Clean the stores, train the employees well, maybe reduce the footprint to key flagships where they can focus their time and attention. Even with these changes, the changed retail landscape may be difficult for them to succeed in. They could further try to do what Barnes and Noble has done - devolve power and decision making to the store level, so stores can be more locally competitive and attractive. Maybe even rename the local branch Hudson's! I know I'd go check out a Hudson's!

1953

[stasu1213]

Reading Macy's Wikipedia page, they have not been very successful as a retail company for some time. They have tried multiple strategies and closed many stores over the past decades. My gut, and experience in their stores, tells me that what they need is to focus on being good at what they do, rather than trying to come up with new gimmicks. Clean the stores, train the employees well, maybe reduce the footprint to key flagships where they can focus their time and attention. Even with these changes, the changed retail landscape may be difficult for them to succeed in. They could further try to do what Barnes and Noble has done - devolve power and decision making to the store level, so stores can be more locally competitive and attractive. Maybe even rename the local branch Hudson's! I know I'd go check out a Hudson's!

1953

Someone will have to purchase the Hudson's name to rename the sitting stores Hudson's. That would be a great full circled idea

[ABetterDetroit]

^ And changing the name on the outside of the store and expecting different results is not a gimmick?

[mikeg19]

Clean the stores, train the employees well, maybe reduce the footprint to key flagships where they can focus their time and attention.

1953

This right here is it. I was recently in Lakeside's Macy's and it would appear that there was about $0 invested into that store in a couple decades. It was dirty, dingy lighting, old worn dirty carpeting, paint and wall paper pealing off walls, couldn't find someone to ring us up. It made me want to leave and not purchase anything.

[401don]

This right here is it. I was recently in Lakeside's Macy's and it would appear that there was about $0 invested into that store in a couple decades. It was dirty, dingy lighting, old worn dirty carpeting, paint and wall paper pealing off walls, couldn't find someone to ring us up. It made me want to leave and not purchase anything.

Oakland is the same but I assumed it's because corporate already knew those stores would be closing.

[JBMcB]

Oakland is the same but I assumed it's because corporate already knew those stores would be closing.

You can definitely tell. The Macy's at 12 Oaks is immaculate. Sommerset is pretty well kept, except for the failing elevators and the clearance section which is usually a mess, but I think you'd need a mob of staff to keep that area straight.

[1953]

Anytime I've been in a Macy's over the past few years, I've thought to myself how angry the founders of the department stores represented by that brand today would be if they could see what their once immaculate and well-managed stores had become.

And, yes, renaming the local stores Hudson's would be a gimmick, if all else fails!

And, no, it probably wouldn't be near enough to save the stores.

Who actually owns the Hudson's brand name? I had assumed Macy's, but the implication in the above post is that they do not.

1953

[Zacha341]

I knew it was 'curtain' call soon as there were so many fire-sales and deep discounts and the turn over of their inventory too slow. Sad.

Closing Oakland Mall with JC Penney probably not far behind may be the end of Oakland.

[mwilbert]

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/bu...n/77585767007/

Closing Oakland Mall with JC Penney probably not far behind may be the end of Oakland.

It's very possible, although I think malls as a category have more life left in them than department stores. Macy's at this point is a roll-up of stores past [[Hudson's, Marshall Field's, Jordan Marsh, Filene's, Strawbridge and Clothier, Kaufmann's, May, and host of others). It's a store format that's been in decline for at least 50 years, and many hundreds of these stores have been closed over time.

I checked and there were still 521 Macy's in the US as of November. This 66 is part of a larger group of 150 that they are planning to close over the next few years, as they attempt to stabilize their finances. Maybe they can do it, but at this point it's really a niche shopping category. Macy's revenue is around $25 billion/year. By contrast, Target [[let's not even think about Walmart or Amazon) has revenue of over $100 billion. Macy's doesn't seem to have found anything that makes it compelling for people to shop there.