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Macy's Polaris Retail Mix

Learn more about the strategy's approach to personnel, presentation, products, promotion, pricing and place.



Macy’s Polaris Retail Mix


Let's take a look at the retail mix observed in Macy's Polaris initial and in-progress implementations.


Personnel: Customer Service

  • Full size locations will still feature specialized services by Macy’s and Bloomingdales like alterations

  • Small format stores will provide more independence and digital guidance to consumers - personnel will come into play during experiential displays and events (such as product launches)

Presentation: Store Design and Display

  • Small formats will have experiential displays and events (such as product launches)

  • “Drive customer discovery”

  • Even in their new display iterations, Macy’s has started renovating some to increase the quality of lighting and spacing of products. Think through question of experience in store and online

Product: Assortment

  • More emphasis on private label brands in clothing and home categories. See product examples below.

    • Clothing: And Now This (younger, generation z demographic) and Bar III (slightly older, millennial and business-appropriate demographic)


  • Home: "Oake"


Promotions: Communications Mix

  • No released statement on how Macy’s plans to pursue communications with consumers

  • Strong following on social - but do not have comprehensive resources for discovering the new elements of the brands

    • Ex) Only 5 highlights, all general, except one that only mentions new Toys ‘R Us feature but no other highlights about new experiences / features

Pricing


Macy’s is making adjustments to other processes in their stores, like payment, to appeal to younger customers. Macy’s has instituted Klarna options for all of their brands to appeal to younger consumers who appreciate buy now pay later (BNPL) systems that take pressure off their more limited / maturing budgets.


Place: Location

  • Closing 125 stores by the end of 2023

  • Improved 100 existing store formats

  • Opened more small format locations

    • 20,000 sq ft format versions for all Macy’s and Bloomingdales

    • Goal is to provide an “highly edited and convenient” version of the brand

    • More convenient pick-up / returns centers in the stores, which will be in more suburban locations and college towns

    • Bloomingdales or “Bloomie’s” specifically will have Colada shops that will feature cocktails, coffee, and Cuban food.

    • Generally sees Bloomingdales as access point to higher end tastes and ability to experiment, and then possibly apply successful attempts to Macy’s

    • Market by Macy’s is still a thing - but they have closed down all to renovate them after “learning important lessons”

    • Market by Macy's has previously aimed for a boutique-style format that featured men’s, women’s and children’s clothing as well as home decor, plants, and an eat-in cafe. However, other versions have replicated a more warehouse-style and did not follow the stated small format plan.

    • 57 mall attached and mall detached Backstage locations - to ‘test’ off-price, but does not seem to indicate commitment to this strategy

    • Strengthening digital ‘locations’ by overhauling product pages and search functions to improve UX


תגובות


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