Department stores try to reinvent themselves

Associated Press

NEW YORK

Department stores trying to recapture their appeal to consumers are making plans to provide more experiences such as spas and restaurants, and offer exclusive selections to transform the stores into more of a destination.

With shoppers increasingly buying online or from niche retailers and discount stores, the onetime pillars of retail are trying to rethink their business to keep up with consumers who want a different experience in stores than they find on their phones. That includes more-attentive sales staff, pampering guests with beauty treatments and bringing in new kinds of merchandise.

“It’s all about creating the experience in the store,” said Saks Fifth Avenue president Marc Metrick. “They’ll shop here. They’ll eat here. They’ll get their hair done here. They’ll meet their friends here.”

Macy’s announced plans Thursday for “re-creating Macy’s physical store presence” to adjust to customer tastes. It reported another quarter of falling profits and sales, though it said some moves such as sprucing up its fine-jewelry area and adding back some sales staff are helping. The company, which is preparing for a new CEO to take over, also has launched its own off-price chain and is testing an artificial intelligence tool that would free up sales assistants to provide higher levels of customer service.

Kohl’s Corp., which saw total second-quarter sales drop 2.1 percent even as cutting expenses helped its profit, is similarly testing off-price stores, smaller-format stores, investing more in e-commerce and sprucing up its beauty business.

Nordstrom, which reported revenue of $3.65 billion for the second quarter, meeting Wall Street forecasts, has scaled back on inventory to meet lower sales. But it’s also focusing on brands that have limited distribution such as Ivy Park and Madewell. It’s also personalizing its online services – this fall, it’s testing a mobile feature that lets customers reserve products online and try them on at the store.

And J.C. Penney, set to report today, has brought back major appliances, after abandoning that category 30 years ago, to lessen its dependence on clothing.