urbanSTL

I was downtown Saturday with friends and there was a good amount of traffic looking at the displays outside Macy's. The only dissapointing part is that it was the same window displays as last year. Hopefully next year they'll be something different.



Too bad Left Banks wasn't open yet as I would have loved to check that out. Maybe if the wife and I go shopping downtown this weekend we'll check out the bookstore as well as Macy's.

Went to Macy's downtown today... buisiness was good. Lots of people shopping today at lunchtime. Had lunch in the buffet restaurant ST. LOUIS ROOM floor 6 and it was delicious - I had never eatten there before - only in Papa's. The food was really good and the service was fast and friendly there.



I also talked with store management and the store happens to be doing good. I was told that sales across the board for Macy's (all locations in STL) are down this holiday season with the economy. However, the rep. I spoke to said that the downtown store is doing better than two of the store in the suburbs, but wouldn't tell me which two. Never the less - good to know! Keep shopping.



PS: The store looks great for the holidays.

matguy70 wrote:Went to Macy's downtown today... buisiness was good. Lots of people shopping today at lunchtime. Had lunch in the buffet restaurant ST. LOUIS ROOM floor 6 and it was delicious - I had never eatten there before - only in Papa's. The food was really good and the service was fast and friendly there.

I prefer the ambience of Papa's, but I think the service in the Saint Louis Room is far better based on numerous visits to each.

I also talked with store management and the store happens to be doing good. I was told that sales across the board for Macy's (all locations in STL) are down this holiday season with the economy.

I can't imagine any Macy's anywhere is doing well based on the company's overall performance, but it's good to hear that the downtown store is holding its own during tough times.

However, the rep. I spoke to said that the downtown store is doing better than two of the store in the suburbs, but wouldn't tell me which two.

I think it's very safe to say you can pick from two of these four locations:



Alton Square

Crestwood Plaza

Jamestown Mall

Northwest Plaza



My guess would be Crestwood and Northwest. Crestwood is not too far from the West County Center flagship store and a renovated South County Center location. Northwest Plaza is in even worse shape than Crestwood, and at both malls, Sears and Macy's are the only anchors left (Dillard's will close its NW Plaza Clearance Center next month).



I'm a little surprised that downtown doesn't rank ahead of all four of these stores. I've been to all four over the last couple of years and cannot think of more depressing places to shop- the mall in general or the Macy's location specifically for that matter. I think Macy's would do well to keep beefing up the merchandise downtown and eliminate three out of four of the aforementioned suburban locations (I'd keep Northwest or Jamestown based on which redevelopment plan advances first, although I wouldn't expect much in this economy.)

I'm not as concerned about the store size as much as I am about the fate of the two restaurants -- those are both great, cheap lunch destinations for downtown workers. I hope that they stay open.

I'm happy the store will remain open and Macy's is pumping some money into DT, but I better get my camera out to get some shots of the candy counter, old escalators, restaurants and the (?original?) floor.

Hopefully they will tear down the walls where the offices are.. and floors 2 and 3 will have WINDOWS!

stlmark wrote:I'm happy the store will remain open and Macy's is pumping some money into DT, but I better get my camera out to get some shots of the candy counter, old escalators, restaurants and the (?original?) floor.

I hope they keep the candy counter!



I've always had this mental picture of me taking my daughter to lunch upstairs and then getting something from the candy counter for dessert.

DeBaliviere wrote:I hope they keep the candy counter!



I've always had this mental picture of me taking my daughter to lunch upstairs and then getting something from the candy counter for dessert.

That has become a ThreeOneFour family tradition! No lunch with 314 Jr. at Papa Fabarre's or the Saint Louis Room is ever complete without a stop at the candy counter! He usually picks out whatever sweets he wants, and I usually leave with a small box of Frangos, so everybody's happy.



I have very mixed emotions about this news. On one hand, I believe it's a necessary move that probably should've happened a long time ago. Even though the store has held its own and there are times when it's actually busy, especially when compared to the 1990s and the early years of this decade, there is still a lot of wasted space in the store. For now, however, I have a few concerns...



1. Macy's commitment to downtown. Sure, they'll use the tax credits to renovate and shrink the store, but what after that? In the STLBJ article the Macy's spokeswoman refused to comment on the fate of the store beyond this year, and while that's typical, it's hardly comforting. You'd think with tax credits and a renewed investment in the store they'd stick around, but with the economy and Macy's recent history in mind (they've gone from over 1,000 jobs upstairs to just a handful in less than three years) I would be afraid to speculate. The stalled Mercantile Exchange plans cannot help either.



2. Size doesn't always matter, and a smaller store with well-utilized space may actually be more vibrant as Barb Geisman said in the STLBJ article, but how exactly will Macy's position this store? For all the improvements they've made in the last three years, there are many shortcomings (men's casual and children's selections come to mind immediately) that they've made NO attempt to address. It's still lacking compared to the South County store, which itself is woefully lacking compared to West County, Saint Louis Galleria, and even St. Clair Square. If Macy's cannot fix that and address the needs/wants of workers, visitors, and downtown residents alike, then I don't hold out much hope for the store in the long-term.



3. Finally, I wonder what the store layout will be like when it's all said and done. If floors 4-7 are closed, what happens to the Saint Louis Room? And how about Breakfast with Santa, which has been held in that space for the last three years after a long absence of any Christmas-related events downtown? Also, there is a logistical concern, as the bridge to the Macy's garage empties onto the fourth level of the store. Is it possible that Macy's would actually keep the fourth floor open, or would they simply turn it into a long hallway leading to escalators that will take shoppers to the third level? Dillard's had a similarly convoluted layout when they downsized the old Stix Baer & Fuller space in 1984, and I think their redo of the store (which was also overdue at the time) may have actually led to its demise.



Let's just hope that a downsized Macy's becomes a more vibrant anchor downtown. Right now I cannot help but to be a little skeptical, though.

Macy's downtown Chicago on State will also consolidate according to WGN News last night.

the store will have 5 floors instead of 12.



I think it is the wave of the future. These huge stores are expensive and vast space.



Downtown STL's store should look great when completed... I have faith they will keep the restaurants and the stores unique items/details because they do well for the store.



I understand that the redo (according to the store gen. manager) will include all street windows to be reopened.

That is really great news.

matguy70 wrote:Downtown STL's store should look great when completed... I have faith they will keep the restaurants and the stores unique items/details because they do well for the store.



I understand that the redo (according to the store gen. manager) will include all street windows to be reopened.

That is really great news.

That sounds very encouraging!

matguy70 wrote:Macy's downtown Chicago on State will also consolidate according to WGN News last night.

the store will have 5 floors instead of 12.



I think it is the wave of the future. These huge stores are expensive and vast space.



Downtown STL's store should look great when completed... I have faith they will keep the restaurants and the stores unique items/details because they do well for the store.



I understand that the redo (according to the store gen. manager) will include all street windows to be reopened.

That is really great news.

Hopefully management will follow through on this- it would make the store much more inviting.



If Macy's handles the transition well and strengthens the merchandise offered within, this could be a great move for the downtown store.



I also saw something recently (can't remember if it was the Miami Herald or the Sun-Sentinel) that said Macy's is planning something similar for the former Burdines flagship in downtown Miami. Downsizing and repositioning these stores is probably necessary for survival of the species, as there are just aren't many downtown department stores left (and ironically, most of them are now Macy's locations). It's not ideal, but it's far better than the likely alternative.



That said, some people in Chicago aren't going to be too happy about a shrunken State Street store. I haven't checked out the website devoted to saving/bringing back the Marshall Field's name, but I can only imagine the level of outrage since that announcement was made. At least it's sticking around, though, which Carson's parent Bon-Ton didn't do when it closed the flagship State Street store a couple of years ago.

JMedwick wrote:This is a key part of the whole rehabilitation. While there is no doubt that the downtown store is in need of serious updating (i.e. more than a coat of white paint to dilute the mauve color scheme), all the updating will not matter if the merchandise does not also improve. I hope that with the updating Macy's will put some effort into capitalizing on the store's heritage/age, revealing some of the older decorative features.

Absolutely. The merchandise offerings must improve, or these efforts may be all for naught. Although the basic makeover that Macy's gave the place when it replaced the Famous-Barr nameplate three years ago helped, more extensive work (incorporating the historic details of the store where possible) should be done.

Through the rehabilitation process, Macy's will need to put some thought into how it will handle the connection to the parking garage, given that the access is on the fourth floor.

That's my biggest concern. I'm also concerned about the loss of the Saint Louis Room. While its dated appearance may not be as charming as the classic look of Papa Fabarre's, it still draws a pretty good crowd during lunch, and it's the only space large enough to hold Breakfast with Santa and other special events. I doubt that Macy's is planning to do this, but I'd like to see them move the Saint Louis Room to the fourth level so there would still be two restaurants and a special events space. A location on the bridge level would draw more business from people parking in the Macy's and Kiener garages since they are both connected, and the merchandise there could be moved to one of the other three levels.

While I don't mind the 3 floor model (I figure it will be a basic Macy's layout, pretty much like the suburban stores), Macy's is missing an opportunity to not develop the basement as a surplus merchandise/sale outlet. It would give the downtown store a unique draw (the regional collection of sales merchandise) and perhaps attract more customers for the downtown store (which would benefit the three "normal" floors).

I absolutely agree. I heard rumors a couple of years ago about Macy's reopening the basement and basement mezzanine areas for dining space and/or clearance merchandise, and this would be a way to draw more customers into the downtown store for regularly priced merchandise as well.



I think Macy's Downtown will look much better and offer a more vibrant shopping environment once the remodeling and downsizing is complete, but I really hope Macy's will make more of an effort with merchandising and store positioning than they've done in the last three years.

The Central Scrutinizer wrote:It's (the candy counter) a pathetic shell of what it once was. I certainly won't go out of my way to go there.

It isn't as good as it was when I was a kid, but my 6 y/o son is still pretty satisfied with the selection there, so I'd hate to see it go.

I understand that the redo (according to the store gen. manager) will include all street windows to be reopened.

That is really great news.





that is so exciting. does anyone have pictures of what the interior used to look like? talk about a cool shopping experience. opening the windows to the street, etc. it will make a huge difference. a mall store or this magnificent building that could be in New York... hmmmmm

matguy70 wrote:Macy's downtown Chicago on State will also consolidate according to WGN News last night.

the store will have 5 floors instead of 12.

I can't find this news anywhere.

Macy's is totally slammed today - great to see.

We've been to Macy's four times in three days, and from what we've seen, it's been pretty busy most of the time over the last several days.



Today the area where much of the fine jewelry near the west Locust Street entrance was before the recent clearance sale was blocked off with "Pardon us while we make exciting changes" signage. Is Macy's already following through with its plans to downsize the store? I guess I'd better bring my camera next time!

We've been around this barn before in the forum. I don't see this as great news unless Macy's has just recently figured out how it can outperform it's competitors. The answer is not making the downtown store conform to a standard template. Clothing is only the baseline and its far too competitive to hang all your hats on. What has the potential to WOW the visitor when they enter the store and attract visitors to the store?



Comparative and Competitive Advantage of the Downtown Store

The potential to offer unique experiences.

Unusual and historic restaurants.

Available space for community meetings with catering.

A candy counter with potential for a full confectionary.

A gourmet snack bar.

Windows.

Historic design elements underneath drywall.

The opportunity to offer a full Hallmark card shop.

etc...

I think something that would make a huge difference in the shopping experience at the downtown Macy's would be if they opened up some of the windows on the upper floors and allowed some natural light into the shopping spaces. The place is such a cave, which is strange because their are literally hundreds of windows that could shine in to the shopping floors. I have always found the atmosphere oppressive there and I think this would really help. Think about doing Christmas shopping and watching it snow on downtown. Or watching the Salvation Army kettle get stolen by some punks.

TGE-ATW wrote:I think something that would make a huge difference in the shopping experience at the downtown Macy's would be if they opened up some of the windows on the upper floors and allowed some natural light into the shopping spaces. The place is such a cave, which is strange because their are literally hundreds of windows that could shine in to the shopping floors. I have always found the atmosphere oppressive there and I think this would really help. Think about doing Christmas shopping and watching it snow on downtown. Or watching the Salvation Army kettle get stolen by some punks.

I like that idea. I once shopped at a department store in Copenhagen that was in an old building like the Railway Exchange - its windows were exposed to let in outside light, and it really made for a pleasant store.