America's department stores are in deep, deep trouble I know that #retailhell is getting beat to death these past few weeks, so I think I'll just leave this here instead of starting yet another thread. I just figured I’d share this one article, because I'm checking out The Week per kleinbl00's recommendation and it has some points about Wall Street canabalizing company assets. Which reminds me of this rant I made a while back. Also, the other day I heard someone call Venture Capitals "Vulture Capitals" and I can't help but think that term fits pretty well.
a suit. mid-level jewelry. clothes. Honestly - I hit up a department store this Christmas and it was jam-packed. There are wide swaths of the world who don't buy some things online. There's no doubt that the tide has shifted and will continue to do so... but there are some things it is nice to go and try on before buying.
Remember when we talked about Packard buying Studebaker was a recipe for failure? I think when you merge two companies right after both were coming out of bankruptcy, you can't hope for the best. In 1990, Federated, under the control of Robert Campeau, went bankrupt after its hostile takeover of Allied Stores; it emerged from bankruptcy after the ouster of Campeau in 1992 as a new public company. Federated then took over Macy's in 1994 while that company was still emerging from its own bankruptcy in 1992. They did really well though, for quite a while. I think part of the reason they lasted this long was just by sheer market share. Their strategy seemed to consist of buying up a few more brands in an attempt to gain more market share and cut off other competitors. The changing economy though, seems to be catching up to them. It'll be interesting to see if they survive or start to sink faster and faster like SEARS is.
Up here they're despised for annihilating The Bon Marche. Fuck Macy's.On February 6, 2008, Terry Lundgren announced the localization strategy and the company's plan to shed 2,550 jobs. This included laying off the Macy's Northwest headquarters and merging all of the former The Bon Marché stores under the Macy's West division.
Worse. With a headquarters in Cincinnati, they're mid-Westerners. ;) Though ButterflyEffect's article says they're closing their flagship Cincinnati store, so they might move back to New York City . . .