urbanSTL

I am really glad Macy's kept the store downtown and spruced it up. I think they will be happy too.



One of the biggest, and most important changes, was to open and brighten up the first floor. I really don't know why Famous blacked out most of their windows, making it look forbidding--"Fortress Famous." With more windows and light, customers are drawn in.



Yesterday, I went to Tuetenberg's for lunch, and strolled through the new Macy's. Things are looking more and more bright for downtown, and the optimism of people is palpable. Lots of smiling pedestrians downtown yesterday. It's a great feeling.

My only wish for Macy's now is that they would stay open a little later, maybe 8pm or so.

^I think that will come, just as all the restaurants will start to stay open longer. It'll just take critical mass, and I think we're very nearly there. Downtown is just waking up from a long, long slumber. Give her some time to drink a cup of coffee.

Re Steve's comments...I'd like to hear some industry pundits or analysts help us understand "What Were They Thnking?" at May Co. for the past 20 years.



Everything Macy's is doing is basic common sense stuff.

Matt wrote:Re Steve's comments...I'd like to hear some industry pundits or analysts help us understand "What Were They Thnking?" at May Co. for the past 20 years.



Everything Macy's is doing is basic common sense stuff.

I've been wondering the same thing about May Company. My guess is that they were too miserly to invest a dime in an underperforming store, yet they didn't want to pull the plug on it since corporate headquarters was upstairs. So, it was operated as a loss leader, with minimal hours open, and minimal investment. And it was becoming increasingly mediocre by the minute, even though I have always shopped there first before other Famous-Barr locations strictly on principle.

I guess I should be grateful that May Company at least kept the store open, making Federated's dramatic transformation of it into a worthy downtown Macy's possible.

I'm a little sad to see the Famous-Barr name pass, but for many years it has really been nothing more than a name.

And by doing common sense stuff, Macy's is making all the right moves so far IMHO.

stlmike wrote:http://www.macys.com

^ The Macy's main page has an animation that includes the skyline mix. It goes, from left to right: California (palm trees), Seattle (Space Needle), St Louis (Arch... in the center), Chicago (Sears tower), and New York (Empire State Building).

That's pretty cool that they are having St. Louis "represent" like that! I assumed advertising would be more regional -- meaning those of us in Chicago, St. Louis, and even Seattle get the "Oh look isn't it so cool our store is in NYC too" thing, whereas people in NYC just get a focus on themselves. Great to see it's truly a national ad push.

Tysalpha wrote:

ThreeOneFour wrote:I've been wondering the same thing about May Company. My guess is that they were too miserly to invest a dime in an underperforming store, yet they didn't want to pull the plug on it since corporate headquarters was upstairs. So, it was operated as a loss leader, with minimal hours open, and minimal investment. And it was becoming increasingly mediocre by the minute, even though I have always shopped there first before other Famous-Barr locations strictly on principle.



I guess I should be grateful that May Company at least kept the store open, making Federated's dramatic transformation of it into a worthy downtown Macy's possible.



I'm a little sad to see the Famous-Barr name pass, but for many years it has really been nothing more than a name.

314, I have to agree. I think May Co had been taking all St. Louisans for granted -- and not just the downtown store. For too long they had no truly local competition. They assumed we would support their stores, no matter how poorly they treated the downtown store, no matter how junky and dirty they let the Galleria store become, and no matter what safe and bland merchandise they stocked. It is sad to say, but it seems a fresh way of thinking and challenging the status quo is just what we needed.

Hopefully the Macy's redo will get Dillards off their butt. The Dillards Galleria needs a makeover real bad.

When you contemplate today's street party, it was really an incredible event to witness. It was for a business. Not politics, St. Louis 2004, a sports team, boosterism, etc... It was a for-profit business closing the street and conducting a huge celebration of capitalism. It warmed my heart to experience something like this in downtown!



Also, this was the first time I've ever seen a CEO of a major company on the street in downtown. In fact, the CEO, COO and president of Macy's Midwest. Maybe the disconnect that St. Louis-based companies have with the communitiy will be closed a little?

^ I agree, Matt. I was there today and the atmosphere was great! Everyone- those in attendance AND those at work- seemed to be enjoying the day.

To expand a bit on what I said earlier- I really dreaded the merger when I first heard the rumors in early 2005, mostly because I feared the downtown store would be a casualty. Macy's has alleviated my worst fear, and in the process, has made the store so much better. And renovation is still in progress- they're not done yet!

May did so little to distinguish the downtown location from other Famous-Barr stores, and the only difference between them and Foley's, Hecht's, or Kaufmann's was the name on the doors, buildings, and price tags. So I don't think Macy's national presence is going to make the homogenity among these stores any worse, when it's already been there for years.

Time will tell if Macy's has the right formula, but I think they're off to a great start.

If anyone's got 'em, can they post some pictures? I'd absolutely love to see what's going on inside in particular.

this is great news.

In the DC area, they are rolling out the Macy's takeover, too. They keep showing an ad on TV that shows the Arch with a skyline (make believe skyline?). A lady picks up the Arch and it turns into a shopping bag or purse.

I also attended the party, the first floor looks great and those skyline shots are all over the windows, palm trees, space needle, stl skyline, chicago, then new york... really cool.... It was a great day for downtown, and it was really exciting...

noticed their hours:

MACY'S DOWNTOWN - ST. LOUIS STORE HOURS



Saturday, September 9: 10:00AM - 10:00PM



Sunday, September 10: 12:00PM - 5:00PM



Monday, September 11: 10:00AM - 6:00PM



Tuesday, September 12: 10:00AM - 6:00PM



Wednesday, September 13: 10:00AM - 6:00PM



Thursday, September 14: 10:00AM - 6:00PM



Friday, September 15: 10:00AM - 6:00PM

Yeah, Macy's/Federated seems like St. Louis. Who knows, maybe they'll move their HQ to the new McGowan Tower?

Not a bad theory. Why else would the CEO and COO have been in St. Louis and attended the store openings on Fri. and Sat? They had about 394 others all over the country?

I have no idea about that theory, but the downtown store did have it's "reopening" a day before every other store. Even if they had no plans in any way shape or form to move any more jobs here, much less the headquarters, it is great to see them acknowledging that St. louis was the home of May, and especially the downtown store.

I think they definitely did a good job of spucing up the store. Wider isles, cleaner, new white walls, more lights, etc. Other than that, why would anyone go out of their way to shop there? While they might pick up more traffic with the improvements, it does't strive to be better than any other regional stores, when this store could be so much more. Why can't they open up the windows that face the street? Maybe expose the orginal ceilings, and columns - if they still exisit. This store could be a true flagship store,if they wanted it to be. As it is now, I don't think people will be going out of their way to shop there.

I was hoping to hear someone say that they exposed the columns.

I guess I can't get enough of this place! After taking my son for the block party on Friday, my wife and I went back Saturday morning for the ribbon cutting. We were among the first 500 (the line stretched all the way down Olive and around to the Sixth Street side) so each of us received a $10 gift card (which were promptly spent!). Unfortunately, neither of us had the lucky $1000 gift card, because I think we could've easily spent it right there.

As I said before, I am pleased with the changes Macy's made. On the main level, the escalator shaft has been covered with an elevated platform for mannequins. I don't know if that's temporary, or if they plan to re-open the basement and basement balcony (mezzanine) levels at some point. (That would be the ideal spot for clearance merchandise IMHO).



Interior changes: A- (More changes are on the way on upper levels, and I wish they would've exposed the original columns). That said, the store is much more attractive and user-friendly in its new configuration. The ladies, my wife included, really seemed to like the private label merchandise that's now on the first floor on the Olive Street side.

Exterior changes: A- The black awnings are sharp, the plaques look nice, and they get extra points for keeping the F-B plaques at the building's corners. On the Seventh and Sixth street sides, not all windows were decorated, but at least those undecorated windows now have white backgrounds with the red star logo featured prominently.

I'm very excited by the changes Federated made to the downtown store. It is a much more inviting place to shop by all means. However, I would like to see Macy's make at least these additional changes in the future:

- Restore official regional flagship status to this store. Famous-Barr made the Galleria the flagship in 1991, and the West County store in 2001.

- Offer merchandise commensurate with flagship status. That means bringing Macy's I-N-C private label threads there, along with designers that are either underrepresented or not represented at all downtown.

- Re-open the basement and basement mezzanine for clearance items.

- Consider bringing back Santaland, or at least, the breakfast with Santa event that Famous-Barr had last year.


- Display merchandise in all exterior windows and expose the original architectural features of the main level.


The rooftop sign on Locust Street hasn't yet been updated, and the glass doors leading to the Centre are closed. I assume major changes to this side won't be made until the skybridge is demolished.

I think that there is a definite buzz now about the downtown store. I walked through today, and it looks great. It was also quite a bit more crowded than usual, which is great to see. I think that with the coming transformation of St. Louis Centre, Macy's is going to be the heart of the downtown retail scene once again.



As far as people going out of their way to shop there, I think it can be successful without people going out of their way to go there. Before the Macy's transition, the only people who the store really appealed to were geeks like us who like shopping there just because it's downtown. Its captive audience, the 80,000+ people who work downtown every day, tourists and conventioneers, and the thousands of new downtown residents found little to like about it. By upgrading the store to put it on par with the other Macy's stores, the people who spend their days downtown will utilize it for its convenience.

Wanna win back customers from discounters? They've gotta get rid of those old NCR cash registers and implement cutting-edge payment systems. I paid with a debit card and they wrote up the sale by hand and used an old credit plate machine to imprint the card!



Also, their web presence should be more than window dressing.



The DT store should put in a "sundries" shop so that I can buy some Kleenex and vitamin C this winter.