Over the past few years, we have seen quite a few stores shut their doors. In some cases, companies closed completely. In other cases, brands chose to close brick and mortar stores in favor of an online presence. In yet other cases, companies chose to remain open but strategically closed some of their locations to focus on the locations that were getting the most sales.

After posting their fourth quarter report, Macy’s has announced how they plan to turn the company around. That involves closing stores.

Macy’s online sales increased by 4% in the fourth quarter, but their in store sales dropped by 5.4%. While the company does not plan to shut its doors completely, there are plans for some major changes. The first one involves closing a total of 150 Macy’s stores by 2026. Fifty of those locations will close their doors in 2024.

While we don’t know exactly which store locations will be closing and when, Macy’s considers their mall locations and stores in downtown districts to be the worst performing stores.

By 2026, Macy’s will only have 350 stores, but that doesn’t mean that they’re turning their backs on brick and mortar retail stores. In fact, they are optimistic about their higher end luxury branded stores and plan to focus more of their energy there. These brands are Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury.

While 150 Macy’s locations will be closing, new and smaller Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury locations will be opening their doors. Macy’s plans to open 15 Bloomingdale’s stores and 30 Bluemercury store locations.

 

GlobalData Retail analyst Neil Saunders told DailyMail.com, “The plans are about correcting what has gone wrong at Macy’s, and the biggest things that have gone wrong at Macy’s are the quality of the stores and the product assortment, and so over the years customers have deserted it, sales have tumbled and store productivity has gone down. All the metrics have gone in the wrong direction.'” Saunders added, “But of course, turning around something that has been left to rot for many years isn’t easy, it isn’t cheap, and it isn’t quick.”

While Saunders believes Macy’s plan is “sensible,” he also isn’t sure if it will be successful. He explained, “It comes down to how effectively Macy’s can execute it.”

Another change Macy’s recently made is that the company appointed a new CEO. Tony Spring was formerly the CEO of Bloomingdale’s, but he was appointed CEO of Macy’s earlier in February 2024.

In a statement, Spring explained his feelings about the changes at Macy’s. He shared, “We are making the necessary moves to reinvigorate relationships with our customers through improved shopping experiences, relevant assortments and compelling value.”

Do you shop at Macy’s? Do you think Macy’s plan is “sensible”?