Macy’s teams up with Facebook to bring pure players to stores

Macy’s goes one step further with its omnichannel strategy. The American department store group has signed an agreement with Facebook to enable 150 pure players sell their products in an offline space called The Market Macy’s.

The new retail area will be installed in nine of the company stores with the highest footfall rates. The offering at The Market Macy’s includes clothing, technological devices and make-up, but it will periodically change.

This is the latest measure taken by Macy’s amid its restructuring process, in which technology and ecommerce play a key role. Two months ago, the company appointed Naveen Krishna, a former executive of Home Depot, to lead the strategy in this area. In august, Macy’s hired Hal Lawton as president, after being working for Ebay.

Macy’s has recently appointed new executives from companies like Home Depot and Ebay to lead its omnichannel strategy

In the framework of this strategy, Macy’s has added virtual reality and augmented reality tools in brick-and-mortar stores to increase footfall and boost revenues.

The group stores already have virtual mirrors, which allow customers to do make-up tests, and also introduced a tool in furniture sections that allow to create room simulations.

Macy’s explained to investors how it plans to be on a growth path last June. In the first quarter of 2017, the company turnover fell by 7.4%. The initiatives announced encompassed the introduction of new tech devices, a broadening of the offer diversity and to bet more on exclusive and limited-edition products.