Retail shakeout: Federated to close two Kaufmann's, one Macy's

Tony Goins

Business First

 

...

 

Federated said Thursday it plans to close Kaufmann's stores at Polaris Fashion Place and the Mall at Tuttle Crossing, and will close a Macy's at Eastland Mall. Closings will begin in 2006, according to Federated.

 

May is building a new Kaufmann's at Eastland, which is slated to open in the fall.

 

...

 

The Eastland Kaufmann's will become a Macy's store, as will another Kaufmann's at the City Center mall.

 

...

 

http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2005/07/25/daily28.html

 

Looks like Cincinnati will largely be spared, thank God.

 

Federated plans to cut about 6,200 jobs

 

CINCINNATI (AP) — Federated Department Stores (FD) said Tuesday it plans to cut about 6,200 jobs beginning in 2006, including 1,700 in St. Louis at the corporate offices of May Department Stores, which Federated bought this year.

Federated also said it will convert all 62 of its newly acquired Marshall Field's stores to the Macy's nameplate by next fall.

 

About 4,500 positions will be eliminated beginning in March as Federated phases out May's divisional operations in Boston; Houston; Arlington, Va.; and Los Angeles.

 

...

 

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/retail/2005-09-20-federated_x.htm

Chicagoans are not happy about this at all...poll fro today's Tribune

 

Will a name change at Field's make a difference to you?

 

90.2%

Yes (12107 responses)

 

9.8%

No (1313 responses)

 

13420 total responses

(Poll results not scientific)

 

If so, would it make you more or less likely to shop there?

 

3.4%

More (425 responses)

 

96.6%

Less (12010 responses)

 

12435 total responses

(Poll results not scientific)

 

(New question:) When did you last shop at Field's?

 

31.0%

Within the last week (2074 responses)

 

39.4%

Within the last month (2636 responses)

 

21.5%

Within the last year (1435 responses)

 

8.0%

More than a year ago (537 responses)

 

6682 total responses

(Poll results not scientific)

Why in the world would they not keep the Marshall Field's name in Chicago?  Obviously there is much loyalty to the brand in Chicago.  Christmas at the State Street Macy's...hmmm...somehow just not the same, especially to the Chicagoan I know.  Federated has managed to remove any and all local ties to department stores...even the venerable Marshall Field.  I certainly wish Federated well because it is an Ohio company, but they have just created another national chain without any identity, individuality, or uniqueness--granted, much of that has already been lost but is now completely lost.

that news really iritates me. first federated gets rid of all the local stores(lazrus, burdines, richs, bon marche) then they buy out the may company stores, and then they decide not to keep the marshall fields name! whats next, getting rid of the lord&taylor name(who i use to work for)? they should keep the marshall fields name in the chicago area(at least at the state street store). i suppose bloomingdales will not exist within the next 10 years and they may buy out neimans, saks, barneys, nordstroms, etc...

Federated plans big changes

6,200 jobs in peril; Marshall Field's to be Macy's

 

By John Eckberg

Enquirer staff writer

 

Federated Department Stores Inc. said Tuesday it would cut up to 6,200 jobs, eliminate the venerable Marshall Field's nameplate and 10 other brands and find a buyer for May's bridal shop division as part of its acquisition of St. Louis-based May Department Store Co.

 

Ronald W. Tysoe, Federated vice chairman finance/real estate, said the company did not know how many jobs would be cut as a result of Federated's $17 billion purchase of May Co., concluded in late August, but predicted its downtown Cincinnati headquarters would grow.

 

...

 

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050921/BIZ01/509210333/1076/BIZ

Federated to add 300 jobs locally

Consolidation of credit divisions to benefit Deerfield Twp.

 

By John Eckberg

Enquirer staff writer

 

 

Federated Department Stores Inc., plans to consolidate a former May Department Stores Co. credit division into Federated's own credit support division in Warren County and bring up to 300 new jobs to Deerfield Township by spring.

 

The move will shutter May credit support divisions in Lorain and Parma, Ohio, as well as Houston.

 

It will eliminate 800 to 900 jobs and help bring an estimated $175 million in savings next year with $450 million in savings projected for 2007.

 

...

 

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051026/BIZ01/510260313/1002/BIZ

From Columbus Business First, 10/26/05:

 

 

Federated opens Kaufmann's, plans Macy's closing

 

Federated Department Stores Inc. held a grand opening for the Kaufmann's store at Eastland Mall Oct. 26, a day after it announced it will hold going-out-of-business sales at its Macy's store at Eastland starting Jan. 29.

 

Wednesday's grand opening also showcased a number of renovations at Eastland, said mall owner Glimcher Realty Trust. Columbus-based Glimcher (NYSE:GRT) said it updated mall entrances, installed outward facing retail space and plans to install a new children's play area at Eastland in December.

 

...

 

© 2005 American City Business Journals Inc.

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2005/10/24/daily23.html?from_rss=1

 

But cuts for Lorain and Parma. From the 10/26/05 PD:

 

 

Federated to eliminate 800 jobs in NE Ohio

Wednesday, October 26, 2005

Janet H. Cho

Plain Dealer Reporter

 

Federated Department Stores Inc. announced Tuesday it will eliminate nearly 800 jobs at credit facilities in Lorain and Parma as part of its merger with the May Department Stores Co.

 

Cincinnati-based Federated said it will begin closing the former May Co. credit operations in Lorain and Parma starting in spring 2006, while expanding its financial, administrative and credit services center in Mason, Ohio, near Cincinnati.

 

...

 

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:

[email protected], 216-999-5069[/i]

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/business/11303195017980.xml&coll=2

 

Corporations are always going around screwing things up.....down with corporate empires :evil:

Sweet!

 

<b>Federated bringing 200 jobs downtown

May merger pays off for Cincinnati</b>

 

By John Eckberg

Enquirer staff writer

 

About new 200 jobs are headed to the Cincinnati headquarters of Federated Department Stores Inc. on West Seventh Street thanks to its $17 billion purchase of May Department Store Co.

 

Thomas G. Cody, vice chair of Federated, told members of the Cincinnati Rotary Club Thursday that Cincinnati would soon reap the benefits of a stronger Federated with more than 900 stores coming under the Macy’s banner.

 

...

 

E-mail [email protected]

 

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060112/BIZ01/301120014

--Plans are afoot to retool the downtown Fountain Place Macy’s – dumping the junior’s section is one change – with new signs, wider aisles and a greater assortment that appeals to adults will occur in time for the reopening of Fountain Square this summer.

 

Well that atleast is a good thing...

Also announced today....they are putting Lord and Taylor on the market. 

 

Personally, I can't wait for Macy's to arrive here in metro Detroit.  The Marshall-Fields (former Hudsons) stores here aren't all that great.  Certainly not like MF in Chicago. 

 

I'm surprised Cincy doesn't have a Bloomingdales yet.

Yes! This article made my day!  :-D

 

... now I am going to go post this on SSP! ;)

Glad to hear that downtown will benefit from this merger but down the street we might see the negative effect of a merger of Cinergy & Duke.  It is uncertain if this will just be a wash in the end.

Personally, I can't wait for Macy's to arrive here in metro Detroit.  The Marshall-Fields (former Hudsons) stores here aren't all that great.  Certainly not like MF in Chicago. 

 

Don't get too excited...my sister in Indy says that Macy's has shopping carts in their stores there.

This appeared in the 2/3/06 Business First of Columbus:

 

 

Federated outlines store shift plans for region

 

More than 100 people will lose their jobs in early April, when Federated Department Stores Inc. eliminates its Kaufmann's operation from Eastland Mall.

 

Federated hopes to find jobs for most of those 108 workers at the company's other Central Ohio stores, said Jim Sluzewski, a company spokesman in Cincinnati.

 

...

 

© 2006 American City Business Journals Inc.

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2006/01/30/daily28.html?from_rss=1

 

That's horrible. Moving jobs from one place to another is one thing, but losing jobs is another...

http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2006/02/13/daily5.html

 

 

Business First of Columbus - 1:10 PM EST Monday

Federated readying millions for May stores overhaul

Lisa Biank Fasig

For Business First

 

Federated Department Stores Inc., in a bid to improve colorless sales at the roughly 375 locations it acquired from May Department Stores Co., will spend well north of $100 million to shift inventory, expand private labels and renovate those stores.

 

The strategy, detailed in a recent conference call with analysts, will involve the rollout of an estimated $2 billion worth of Macy's private-label products to the stores, as well as the introduction of some May private-label brands to Macy's stores.

 

...

http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2006/02/13/daily27.html

 

Business First of Columbus - 9:22 AM EST Friday

Macy's parent selling 15 store sites

 

Shopping center owner Westfield Group Ltd. will acquire the Macy's store that Federated Department Stores Inc. plans to shutter at the Richland Mall in Mansfield.

 

The 195,000-square-foot store is among 15 that Cincinnati-based Federated (NYSE:FD) plans to sell to Westfield, an Australian owner of retail centers around the world.

 

...

 

Federated seeks stock split

3/28/2006, 8:03 p.m. ET

The Associated Press

 

CINCINNATI (AP) — Federated Department Stores Inc. intends to split the company's common stock on a two-for-one basis if shareholders approve the move, the company said Tuesday.

 

The board also declared a 2 percent increase in the quarterly cash dividend payable July 3, 2006, to shareholders of record at the close of business June 16, 2006.

 

...

This company seems to be doing well.  I keep hearing positive reports about earnings and jobs.  They also have been good to Cincy (at least it seems that way).  I know that some other cities are losing out on Federated's business moves, but as for Ohio (and specifically Cincinnati) they are doing well in my eyes.

http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2006/05/01/daily10.html

 

Federated selling overlapping stores in three states

Business First of Columbus - 11:21 AM EDT Tuesday

 

Federated Department Stores Inc. is selling seven duplicate department stores in three states to an Indianapolis mall developer.

 

Simon Property Group will buy stores in Burlington and Braintree, Mass.; Nashua, N.H.; and Indianapolis, Mishawaka, Evansville and Greenwood, Ind.

 

All the stores are in malls or shopping centers owned by Simon, and all overlap with other Federated stores as a result of the company's August acquisition of May Department Stores Co.

 

...

Indianapolis group purchases former Federated stores

Cincinnati Business Courier - 11:43 AM EDT Tuesday

 

Simon Property Group said Monday that it will buy seven buildings formerly operated by Federated Department Stores Inc., and convert them to other uses.

 

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Closing is expected in July.

 

The group will purchase stores in Burlington and Braintree, Mass.; Nashua, N.H.; Mishawaka, Evansville and Greenwood, Ind.; and Indianapolis. All of the stores are located in malls or shopping centers owned by Simon.

 

...

From the 5/5/06 Warren Tribune Chronicle:

 

 

Federated to slash jobs

By RAYMOND L. SMITH Tribune Chronicle

 

WARREN — Approximately 100 employees at the Kaufmann’s distribution center on Bailey Road will lose their jobs by the end of spring 2007.

 

They will be given an opportunity to voluntarily leave their jobs and receive a separation buyout from the Federated Department stores, which is the new owner of Kaufmann’s. The distribution center currently employs about 230 people.

 

The jobs will be eliminated in phases through the remainder of this year and the first part of 2007.

 

...

 

[email protected]

 

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/business/articles.asp?articleID=3456

 

IRS settlement to boost Federated's profits

Cincinnati Business Courier - 11:37 AM EDT Tuesday

 

Federated Department Stores said it will increase its second-quarter guidance by 33 cents a share, thanks to a settlement with the Internal Revenue Service.

 

The settlement involves losses incurred on tax returns in 2000-02, after Federated sold its Fingerhut catalog and direct mail division. It will add $128 million in cash to the company's coffers during the quarter. That will result in a tax benefit of about $80 million, with about $20 million in interest during the second quarter, and an additional 33 cents per diluted share.

 

...

From the 6/6/06 Dispatch:

 

 

Name change has hurt Macy’s

Decision to drop ‘Lazarus’ not a hit here

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

Jeffrey Sheban

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

 

Macy’s is not as big a draw in central Ohio since the chain’s name was changed from Lazarus last year, market research indicates.

 

In 2005, customer visits to Macy’s in the Columbus market declined 4.5 percentage points, or by more than 50,000 people, according to the independent marketresearch firm Scarborough Research.

 

The drop was steeper than Lazarus experienced during the previous five years combined.

 

Parent company Federated Department Stores changed the Lazarus name on six department stores and two furniture stores in central Ohio in March 2005, ending a 154-year run for a brand that had become synonymous with shopping in Columbus. The first Lazarus store opened in 1851 Downtown and grew into a regional chain of more than 40 stores in Ohio and four other states.

 

...

 

[email protected]

 

http://www.dispatch.com/business-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/06/06/20060606-F1-01.html

 

I don't think the name change is the cause of their demise. They were already going down-hill, hence them changing to a more prestigious sounding name as a quick fix to begin with. They should do customer surveys and get to the root of the problem that way.

I notice little difference between Lazarus and Macy's here, especially since they are both owned by the same company.

Personally, I think the reason sales have gone down is because Macys/Lazarus does not carry as much nice merchandise as it once did. My parents told me that Lazarus use to sell Armani, Donna Karan, and a few other high end brands. It seems like once Federated got a better grip, they took those away.

I wonder how people in Chicago will react once they take away the Marshall Fields name!

I also think Chicago is going to present a problem.  People were pissed about the change.  I think it will be like Dillard's changing all the McAlpin's over in Cincinnati a few years ago - they did horribly.

^ I think the brands they carry will vary by location.  FOr example, Kenwood Mall near Cincinnati tends to have more of the high end brand names because they are pretty close to some expensive neighborhoods.  Other Macy's stores in the area tend to fewer high end brands.

I also think Chicago is going to present a problem.  People were pissed about the change.  I think it will be like Dillard's changing all the McAlpin's over in Cincinnati a few years ago - they did horribly.

 

Dillard's is nothing like McAlpin's.

WHAT CHANGE!? LOL. It's the same store with a new sign out front. When I go shopping, I walk into a store and buy something because I like it and the price is right, not because I'm intimidated by the name "Macys". My guess is they don't do markdowns as much as they did before (the only time I ever buy anything at lazarus is when it's on sale) or maybe lazarus can't keep up with the latest hot designer brands, or maybe their customer service is lacking or maybe they don't sell enough charge cards, or maybe other stores are sprouting up that offer advantages over them. For a market research firm to conclude that people are just intimidated by the branding spells laziness to me.

I like the change of names from Lazarus to Macy*s.  I find it more attractive to say....doesnt it sound better to say downtown Cincy has a Sak's, Tiffany's, Brooks Brothers, and Macy*s....pretty elite if you ask me :-D

I think this is just one factor in the resulting decline, and for analysts to end there is sloppy & lazy.  I don't think some shoppers, including the woman quoted in the article, realize that the Macy's store they shop in has been owned by the same company for years, and only the name of the store has changed.  People have an emotional attachment to the Lazarus name, though, and they are having an emotional reaction to the fact that name is no longer around, even if the stuff inside is the same as it was before.

 

I think the largest impact is going to be the conversion of the Kaufmann's stores along with the rest of the old May nameplates.  These stores are not just changing names, but also owners, clothing lines carried etc...  It is going to be a huge adjustment, just like when Dillard's bought McAlpins.

 

I don't understand why some companies are so quick to consolidate under one name.  Sometimes that local connection (even if it is just in name) is worth more than the cost of printing tags, bags, signs, etc for each nameplate.  I work for a very large company that operates under over 20 nameplates, although the names are different and the stores are set up a little different, the rest of the stuff is the same.  It is possible to keep that local connection and still be consolidated and standardized across all facets of the business.

In Chicago, there is something about Fields on State St.  People in Chicago are almost reverent about it.

It won't be the same when it is Macy's

I just think its funny that people invest emotionally in department stores.

Sounds like this is win/win; Federated sells a building and DT Philly gets a new store!

 

 

Federated sells site in Philly

BY JOHN ECKBERG | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

 

Federated Department Store Inc. plans to sell an historic department store that sprawls across a half block in downtown Philadelphia to Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust, the company said today.

 

The sale price was not disclosed.

 

The 15-story Strawbridge & Clothier building in the Gallery at Market East opened in 1868 and is between the Philadelphia Convention Center and the Independence Mall area of downtown.

 

...

 

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060719/BIZ01/307190033

Marshall Fields coming down in Dearborn, Michigan.  Macy's just around the corner :)

At the malls in Cleveland the Kaufmann's signs have been taken down, then Macy's signs put up then covered with temporary plastic-sheet Kaufmann's signs.

From the 7/28/06 Cincinnati Business Courier:

 

 

Federated enters deal to sell Columbus store

Cincinnati Business Courier - 12:44 PM EDT Friday

 

Federated Department Stores Inc. has entered into an agreement to sell its Kaufmann's store at Polaris Fashion Place is Columbus, making for the 63rd of 80 stores it is in the process of divesting.

 

Cincinnati-based Federated (NYSE: FD) has signed a letter of intent with Glimcher Realty Trust, the mall's developer. The deal is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2006.

 

...

 

http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2006/07/24/daily65.html?surround=lfn

 

Federated gains rank on sales gain

Cincinnati Business Courier - 2:18 PM EDT Tuesday

 

 

Thanks to its acquisition of May Co., Federated Department Stores Inc. has ranked fourth among American retailers on the basis of sales growth alone.

 

The parent of Macy's and Bloomingdale's, which acquired May Co. a year ago, posted 2005 sales of $22.4 billion, compared with $15.8 billion the year before. That puts it behind GameStop (NYSE: GME), Overstock.com (NASDAQ: OSTK) and The Children's Place (NASDAQ: PLCE), according to a list in Stores magazine, which is published by the National Retail Federation.

 

...

 

http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2006/07/31/daily22.html?t=printable

Not sure if this has been added somewhere else, but this is an update on FACS:

 

Federated jobs overshoot goal

Company hires 90 more people than planned for credit division

Cincinnati Business Courier - July 28, 2006by Lisa Biank FasigStaff Reporter

 

 

Federated Department Stores Inc. has overshot its hiring goal for its credit division in Deerfield Township, creating 90 positions more than the roughly 200 it had expected.

 

The chain, which is about halfway to adding another 200 jobs at its headquarters downtown, ended up bringing total employment at its Financial Administrative and Credit Services (FACS) to 2,250. Federated had expected total employment to come to 2,160, spokesman Jim Sluzewski said.

 

http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2006/07/31/story4.html

 

 

From Business First of Columbus, 9/1/06:

 

 

Federated: Job cuts at Polaris on the way

Business First of Columbus - September 1, 2006

by Kathy Showalter

Business First

 

Federated Department Stores Inc. is preparing to cut jobs at its stores at Polaris Fashion Place in Columbus.

 

The Cincinnati-based operator of Macy's and Kaufmann's has notified the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services that 316 jobs are at risk as the retailer prepares to close its Kaufmann's store at the mall in October. Federated spokesman Jim Sluzewski said the number reflects total employment at the two Polaris stores, even though the company is keeping the Macy's open.

 

"The ... letter is written to reflect all the positions that could be affected," he said. "But do keep in mind that we're working with (Kaufmann's) employees to (try to) keep them."

 

...

 

http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2006/09/04/story10.html

 

Big article in the Wall Street Journal today... about the success of the company and how they're dealing with multiple mall points around the country after the takeovers. The showed South Coast Plaza in Orange County had THREE Macy's (Macy's, Macy's Men, and a furniture store) , while they're shutting down the overflow in Columbus...

Federated launching ad blitz for new stores

Cincinnati Business Courier

September 6, 2006

 

CINCINNATI - Federated Department Stores on Sept. 7 will kick off its largest-ever advertising campaign, using television, print, radio and the Internet to announce the conversion of 400 May Co. stores into Macy's locations.

 

The store conversion, Sept. 9, will result in a coast-to-coast chain of 800 stores, all carrying the same exclusive brands, formats and marketing. A unified advertising program has been one of the selling points of the takeover of May, justifying a national television advertising campaign and giving Federated the chance to build Macy's as a blockbuster brand.

 

...

 

http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2006/09/04/daily19.html?surround=lfn

I don't want ghetto Macy's, I want Marshall Field's here in Chicago!!!

^There is a protest if you are interested on 9/9/2006 9:30 am in front of State St

 

http://www.fieldsfanschicago.org/

 

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-0609050029sep05,1,718293.story?coll=chi-business-hed

 

Hard-core fans stay loyal to brand

 

In Chicago, Marshall Field's devotees are planning rallies, cutting up Macy's credit cards and vowing never to shop at the stores again

 

By Sandra Jones

Tribune staff reporter

Published September 5, 2006

 

 

 

 

-- --------

 

[email protected]

 

^Let it go you two...I didn't protest outside on 4th St. when National City took over Provident Bank.  Its just part of the biz.  GET OVER IT!