First Visit to Macy's On 34th (I'm Applauding)

On Thursday, July 20th there were several postings here on LinkedIn talking about the new private label initiative from Macy’s…On 34th.?@GeorgeAnderson, @daphnehowland, and Macy’s own EVP @adrianmitchell and CEO @jeffgennette all posted updates.

George’s posting was the first one I read, and since I had not heard of this initiative before, I visited the website to familiarize myself with the offering.?After 20 minutes of scrolling through the website I summarized my thoughts on On 34th as being a “merchandising scattershot”.?I saw lots of fun products, but I was having a tough time understanding the brand focus.

Here’s where I say that as a boomer dude, I really can’t evaluate the fashion statement being made here.?I am sure there are others better suited for that.?I can make observations and evaluate the merchandising model.?I look for 4 levels of product.?Basics. ?Seasonal Key Items.? Fashion, and Trend.?That follows an ascending level of risk and novelty, and a descending level of shelf life.

I visited the store the next day and lo and behold, all four levels of product are indeed present.?And beautifully organized into various outfitting opportunities.?Lots of fun products and impeccably presented in this new shop.?Turns out the installation had just been completed the day before.

After several minutes of picture taking, I was very nicely greeted by the store manager with a very friendly, “Can I help you?”.?I introduced myself and told him I was a ‘retail analyst’.?I told him about the postings and conversations on LinkedIn and that I was there in person to be able to comment from a more informed basis.?I told him that I was a former Macy’s guy and that I was always eager to see how Macy’s was evolving the business.?He was very excited about the new brand and that he expected it to be a big hit with a wide range of customers.?“It’s for everybody!”

I stand by my comment regarding On 34th being a “merchandising scattershot”.?But my originally skeptical view is now enthusiastically positive.?There’s no substitute for in-real-life shopping.?Website photos, especially of a brand launch, just don’t do the trick.?So now I will say that scattershot is another way of saying “treasure hunt”.?They do indeed cover the four levels of risk and shelf life that I look for, and they do it in a wide range of fabrics, bodies and wearing moments.?Denim to floral dresses to sequined skirts.?Denim jackets to suede jackets to polka dot trench coats.?It’s all presented on two different pads, each about 30’ x 22’.?Just under 700 sq ft each for a total of about 1500 sq ft with a little aisle space included.?And a Plus Sizes offering is included within that.

It's a guess on my part that the scattershot approach is not a lack of discipline, but a very deliberate exploration of boundaries. ?And a very deliberate effort to create a fun range of wearing moment solutions. ?What is going to resonate with the customer??And by the way, if they made it too focused and boring they would get blasted by customers and critics alike.?So, I won’t often put ‘scattershot’ and ‘applauding’ in the same paragraph, but I am now applauding the whole On 34th effort.?And I’m again saying that just because boomer dude didn’t immediately connect the dots, that’s no reason to challenge the aesthetic and attitude of the whole initiative.?

One last question.?What would the response have been if this exact offering had been dropped into Target? ?(And that’s not a question about this project having been executed by former Target folks.) ?I’ll need another article for that conversation.

#macys #merchandising #branding #tri #retail #assortmentplanning