December 3, 2025
Image Courtesy of Macy’s
What’s Macy’s Turnaround Secret in Notching Sales Victories?
Macy’s has been placed in the same, or at least a similar, basket as other retailers and brands struggling against market forces as of late — joined by other notables such as Kohl’s and Target, to name a few.
However, according to an early December press release issued by Macy’s, the company’s turnaround efforts appear to be delivering concrete results across a variety of metrics, defying many critics’ — and Wall Street — expectations.
Among the most notable wins:
- Macy’s Inc., as a whole, delivered net sales of $4.7 billion, outperforming its own guidance figures. Comp sales improved by 2.5% on an owned basis, and comparable owned-plus-licensed-plus-marketplace basis by 3.2%, also beating guidance. And while this $4.7 billion net sales result represents a 0.6% decrease in quarterly net sales overall, this is largely attributed to the inclusion of store closures in the broader calculation.
- The retailer notched diluted EPS of $0.04, and adjusted EPS of $0.09, again besting guidance projections.
- Macy’s Reimagine 125 locations — those stores where significant renovations, revamps, and service improvements were put into place — earned comparable sales growth of 2.3% on an owned basis, and 2.7% growth on an owned-plus-licensed basis.
- Bloomingdale’s achieved an impressive 8.8% sales growth statistic on an owned basis, and a 9% sales growth victory on an owned-plus-licensed-plus-marketplace basis. This is the highest sales growth figure for Bloomingdale’s over the past 13 quarters.
- Bluemercury also saw comp sales growth, although a more modest 1.1% result.
“Our third quarter sales were the strongest in 13 quarters, reflecting the acceleration of our Bold New Chapter strategy and demonstrating that the meaningful enterprise-wide changes we’ve made are resonating with customers,” Tony Spring, chairman and CEO, said.
“As we enter the holiday season, we are well-positioned with compelling new merchandise and an omni-channel customer experience that delivers both inspiration and value. With a strategy rooted in hospitality, our teams are focused on driving long-term, profitable growth,” Spring added.
Macy’s Bold New Chapter Strategy: Finally Bearing Fruit?
And as Marianne Wilson of Chain Store Age outlined, it appears as if Macy’s “Bold New Chapter” strategy, kicked off in February 2024, was finally delivering firm results.
The strategy involves Macy’s shuttering about 150 stores, focusing its resources on ~350 “go-forward” nameplate locations. As well, expenditures focusing on revitalizing growth in its luxury assortment, opening 15 additional Bloomingdale’s stores (which appear to be doing very well for the company, overall) in addition to 30 Bluemercury locations were part of the game plan.
Wilson quoted David Silverman, senior director of Fitch Ratings, as stating that Macy’s most recent Q3 report had provided “another data point supporting the company’s ability to stabilize market share through its Bold New Chapter strategy.”
“The company’s efforts to improve merchandising and service appear to be gaining traction, as the company sees somewhat accelerating top-line results despite a choppy environment and ongoing challenges at regional malls,” Silverman added, pivoting to note that Fitch Ratings believes that Macy’s is leveraging several cornerstone advantages — namely its scale, financial position, and established vendor relationships — to snag market share away from weaker players in the department store and soft lines business.
BrainTrust
Bhargav Trivedi
Mark Ryski
Founder, CEO & Author, HeadCount Corporation
Neil Saunders
Managing Director, GlobalData
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Discussion Questions
What is the single most important factor driving Macy’s recent victories tied to its Bold New Chapter strategy? Conversely, what is the weakest link in the game plan?
Can Macy’s actually sustain this degree of repeatable sales growth, or is it a short-term flash in the pan? If the latter, what false signals are representing temporary gains?
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In executional terms the turnaround comes from improved shopkeeping standards, investing in the store experience, giving private labels more clarity and oomph, and providing the customer with a more inspirational experience. But none of these things are the main story. The root of the turnaround comes from Tony Spring and his team. They had the courage to recognize that Macy’s was falling short of its potential and the courage to do something about it. The culture at Macy’s has changed and good things have flowed from it. There’s a lot more to do, but a fantastic start has been made.
No debate about the reenergized leadership team and efforts at Macy’s under Tony Spring. However, the numbers tell the real story: Bloomingdale’s delivered 8.8% growth while core Macy’s “Reimagine 125” showcase stores managed just 2.3%. Luxury is riding the macro tailwinds, while the mid-market nameplate treads water. The critical implication is that any learning from Bloomingdale’s does not flow to Macy’s; the contexts are different, as are the customers. I still see the current strategy as harvesting success where the model works while managing decline where it doesn’t (albeit actively). The crucial question remains: can mid-market department stores work at all in the late 2020s, despite ongoing heroics?
Macy’s recent wins stem from a sharper focus on customer experience, especially where renovated stores and a stronger digital commerce strategy finally feel aligned. The “Reimagine 125” locations show that when service, merchandising, and omnichannel execution improve together, customers respond.
The weakest link is relying too heavily on store closures for financial lift. Rationalizing the fleet helps margins, but it doesn’t guarantee long-term growth if the remaining stores don’t keep evolving.
Macy’s can sustain this momentum, but only if these improvements prove durable and scalable. Renovation buzz and marketplace-driven comps can create short-term optimism that fades quickly. Big Lots saw this firsthand by its “Store of the Future” initiative costing millions with minimal return and ultimately damaged the brand. That said, Macy’s isn’t a discount retailer, so the same pitfalls may not directly apply.
The real test is whether Macy’s can deliver a consistent, modern, frictionless experience across its entire go-forward fleet and omnichannel experience but not just a subset of refreshed stores.
One can’t say what one factor contributed to this outcome, but the ‘Reimaged’ test stores appear to be performing well, and I’m impressed their apparent approach to conducting test/control experimentation to identifying winning formulas. But regardless of how they arrived at it, they delivered better financial results, and that’s want counts. Mr. Spring and his team should be pleased. Other retailers have had much larger same-store sales gains, but given where Macy’s came from, this is meaningful progress. I’m only speculating but I can’t help but attribute a good part of this to good old-fashioned store execution. If they stay focused on store execution and convert their store traffic, there is no reason why they keep this momentum going.
I think it’s important to view Macy’s recent sales uptick within the context of easier year-over-year comparisons rather than as a full-fledged victory. The Bold New Chapter strategy is producing visible progress — particularly around merchandising focus, store-rightsizing, and improved digital storytelling — but those results represent improvement, not arrival. From my perspective, the most important driver of Macy’s current momentum is disciplined execution and sharper inventory management after a few volatile years. When you’re comparing against a weaker baseline, even modest improvement can look like a win. The real test will come when Macy’s must comp against stronger prior-year quarters.
Long term, Macy’s success will be defined not by short-term revenue bumps but by relevance and loyalty among a new generation of shoppers. That requires sustained progress in omnichannel experience — an area where I believe Macy’s still has work to do. Over the Thanksgiving weekend, I noted in my own LinkedIn post that Macy’s omnichannel execution lagged peers in unifying digital discovery with in-store fulfillment and checkout. Shoppers increasingly expect that seamless, end-to-end journey, and without it, Macy’s risks losing share to more agile competitors who bridge the gap more effectively.
In short, Macy’s deserves credit for stabilizing performance and refocusing its strategy, but it’s premature to call this a turnaround. To make these early signs of growth sustainable, Macy’s will need to continue investing in technology, fulfillment, and personalization — all while modernizing how younger consumers experience the brand. The brand’s long-term relevance will depend less on easier comps and more on consistent execution across every channel that matters to today’s shopper.
It took Macy’s a long time to realize that in today’s market, finesse is a better tool than brute force. Macy’s used to succeed with a lot of inventory and heavy promotions, led by the One Day Sale. Now it’s less inventory, better curation and presentation, better storytelling. And that all adds up to a better in-store experience. Macy’s has realized that customers have abundant choices from abundant sources at abundant levels of discount and promotion. They had to carve out a path of differentiation and distinction in their stores. And they are now firmly on that path of execution.
What stands out to me is that Macy’s didn’t try to fix everything everywhere – they focused on the stores that showed most potential and invested in atmosphere, service quality, and product selection. Sometimes doing less, but doing it well, works a lot better than spreading improvements thin across every location.
maybe a bit annoying to the shoppers at UNfavored stores, to see the press & big deal that always surrounds NYC (all year, not just Christmas).
Those markets could use a branding message of their own,
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In executional terms the turnaround comes from improved shopkeeping standards, investing in the store experience, giving private labels more clarity and oomph, and providing the customer with a more inspirational experience. But none of these things are the main story. The root of the turnaround comes from Tony Spring and his team. They had the courage to recognize that Macy’s was falling short of its potential and the courage to do something about it. The culture at Macy’s has changed and good things have flowed from it. There’s a lot more to do, but a fantastic start has been made.
No debate about the reenergized leadership team and efforts at Macy’s under Tony Spring. However, the numbers tell the real story: Bloomingdale’s delivered 8.8% growth while core Macy’s “Reimagine 125” showcase stores managed just 2.3%. Luxury is riding the macro tailwinds, while the mid-market nameplate treads water. The critical implication is that any learning from Bloomingdale’s does not flow to Macy’s; the contexts are different, as are the customers. I still see the current strategy as harvesting success where the model works while managing decline where it doesn’t (albeit actively). The crucial question remains: can mid-market department stores work at all in the late 2020s, despite ongoing heroics?
Macy’s recent wins stem from a sharper focus on customer experience, especially where renovated stores and a stronger digital commerce strategy finally feel aligned. The “Reimagine 125” locations show that when service, merchandising, and omnichannel execution improve together, customers respond.
The weakest link is relying too heavily on store closures for financial lift. Rationalizing the fleet helps margins, but it doesn’t guarantee long-term growth if the remaining stores don’t keep evolving.
Macy’s can sustain this momentum, but only if these improvements prove durable and scalable. Renovation buzz and marketplace-driven comps can create short-term optimism that fades quickly. Big Lots saw this firsthand by its “Store of the Future” initiative costing millions with minimal return and ultimately damaged the brand. That said, Macy’s isn’t a discount retailer, so the same pitfalls may not directly apply.
The real test is whether Macy’s can deliver a consistent, modern, frictionless experience across its entire go-forward fleet and omnichannel experience but not just a subset of refreshed stores.
One can’t say what one factor contributed to this outcome, but the ‘Reimaged’ test stores appear to be performing well, and I’m impressed their apparent approach to conducting test/control experimentation to identifying winning formulas. But regardless of how they arrived at it, they delivered better financial results, and that’s want counts. Mr. Spring and his team should be pleased. Other retailers have had much larger same-store sales gains, but given where Macy’s came from, this is meaningful progress. I’m only speculating but I can’t help but attribute a good part of this to good old-fashioned store execution. If they stay focused on store execution and convert their store traffic, there is no reason why they keep this momentum going.
I think it’s important to view Macy’s recent sales uptick within the context of easier year-over-year comparisons rather than as a full-fledged victory. The Bold New Chapter strategy is producing visible progress — particularly around merchandising focus, store-rightsizing, and improved digital storytelling — but those results represent improvement, not arrival. From my perspective, the most important driver of Macy’s current momentum is disciplined execution and sharper inventory management after a few volatile years. When you’re comparing against a weaker baseline, even modest improvement can look like a win. The real test will come when Macy’s must comp against stronger prior-year quarters.
Long term, Macy’s success will be defined not by short-term revenue bumps but by relevance and loyalty among a new generation of shoppers. That requires sustained progress in omnichannel experience — an area where I believe Macy’s still has work to do. Over the Thanksgiving weekend, I noted in my own LinkedIn post that Macy’s omnichannel execution lagged peers in unifying digital discovery with in-store fulfillment and checkout. Shoppers increasingly expect that seamless, end-to-end journey, and without it, Macy’s risks losing share to more agile competitors who bridge the gap more effectively.
In short, Macy’s deserves credit for stabilizing performance and refocusing its strategy, but it’s premature to call this a turnaround. To make these early signs of growth sustainable, Macy’s will need to continue investing in technology, fulfillment, and personalization — all while modernizing how younger consumers experience the brand. The brand’s long-term relevance will depend less on easier comps and more on consistent execution across every channel that matters to today’s shopper.
It took Macy’s a long time to realize that in today’s market, finesse is a better tool than brute force. Macy’s used to succeed with a lot of inventory and heavy promotions, led by the One Day Sale. Now it’s less inventory, better curation and presentation, better storytelling. And that all adds up to a better in-store experience. Macy’s has realized that customers have abundant choices from abundant sources at abundant levels of discount and promotion. They had to carve out a path of differentiation and distinction in their stores. And they are now firmly on that path of execution.
What stands out to me is that Macy’s didn’t try to fix everything everywhere – they focused on the stores that showed most potential and invested in atmosphere, service quality, and product selection. Sometimes doing less, but doing it well, works a lot better than spreading improvements thin across every location.
maybe a bit annoying to the shoppers at UNfavored stores, to see the press & big deal that always surrounds NYC (all year, not just Christmas).
Those markets could use a branding message of their own,