Photos: Etsy

Macy’s taps Etsy to reach Millennials

Etsy, the homemade crafts online marketplace, will open a shop in Macy’s Herald Square in New York City, located in One Below, the newly renovated lower level that’s aimed at Millennials.

Eight Etsy sellers will showcase 57 products in the launch. The assortment, featuring stationery, jewelry and housewares, will be refreshed every six to eight weeks, focusing on a different theme during each selling cycle.

The initial theme will be “New York” and feature local designers. Displays will tell the story of each designer and offer a peak into their creation process.

“The design team at Etsy, in collaboration with Macy’s, worked hard to bring Etsy’s brand into the space as well. We actually sourced all of the risers and tabletop fixtures from Etsy sellers,” Dana Mauriello, director of seller category growth at Etsy, told WWD.

For Macy’s, Etsy Shop will add to the eclectic mix and experience of One Below that’s designed to address the department store giant’s challenges reaching Millennials.

Beyond trendy fashion labels, One Below includes tech gadgets like Fitbit fitness trackers, cosmetics, housewares, food, and blaring house music. It also offers customized embroidery on Levi’s jeans; a 3-D printer that makes jewelry and iPod cases; and a “selfie wall,” where shoppers can take shots of themselves in front of images of New York City landmarks.

“For designers to showcase their products to a locally and globally diverse customer base in the exciting selling environment of Herald Square is an incredible opportunity for both wholesalers and customers,” said Marc Mastronardi, EVP and general merchandise manager of accessories/center core for Macy’s, in a blog entry.

Macy’s is the biggest partner of Etsy’s Wholesale Retailer Commitments program, which was launched last fall to bring its sellers to retail accounts. Similar relationships have been struck with Nordstrom, Whole Foods, West Elm, Lou & Gray and Indigo Books & Music.

BrainTrust

"Macy’s is right on time. Partnering with Etsy will do a few things: signal relevancy to Millennials and introduce fresh ideas to Boomers. Up-and-coming designer merchandise is exactly what Macy’s needs right now."

Liz Crawford

VP Planning, TPN Retail


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Adrian Weidmann

Managing Director, StoreStream Metrics, LLC


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Adrian Weidmann

Managing Director, StoreStream Metrics, LLC


Discussion Questions

Will homemade items from Etsy in any way help Macy’s solve its challenges reaching Millennials? Should other retailers be partnering with Etsy’s sellers?

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Brian Kelly
Brian Kelly
8 years ago

“In any way?” Maybe. This is the flea on the tail attempting to wag the dog.

Only if this merchandise will relevantly differentiate those retailers. Meaning if too many retailers head to this ditch then all will end up there, which is typical retail behavior.

This holiday once again proved that all retailers face the challenge of creating a complete experience (product/price/place/promo/people) that surprises and delights.

And that’s why we say, “retail ain’t for sissies!”

Liz Crawford
Liz Crawford
8 years ago

Macy’s is right on time. Partnering with Etsy will do a few things: signal relevancy to Millennials and introduce fresh ideas to Boomers. Up-and-coming designer merchandise is exactly what Macy’s needs right now.

While it’s terrific they are hosting Etsy sellers in One Below (on-site), it would be a home run to offer a link to merchandise online too.

Joy Chen
Joy Chen
8 years ago

It may help but will not solve Macy’s overall challenges. This will signal to the Millennials that Macy’s is offering a selection that appeals to them but it still needs to be different and unique from what they can get elsewhere. Additionally, the crafts concept that attracts the Millennials gets diluted when it is housed in a big retailer. Retailers can partner with Etsy sellers but it needs to be consistent with their overall strategy or it is not impactful when executed.

Ken Morris
Ken Morris
8 years ago

Macy’s understands that Millennials are instrumental in their future success and is experimenting with creative ways to appeal to their interests. Collaborating with Etsy to showcase products that are desirable for the Millennial demographic segment is a great way to make them feel more attached to the Macy’s brand. Millennial and younger demographics are always connected and have unique product and shopping preferences. Therefore, retailers need to refocus their approach to “selling to my children, not my parents” and shift their marketing strategy accordingly. This just adds to Macy’s theater of shopping concept and enhances their already strong unified commerce position.

Tom Redd
Tom Redd
8 years ago

Etsy is a second step in Macy’s shift from a department store into a pure ALL store. An ALL store is a place where merchandising assures that the assortment and designs maps to ALL shoppers across any channel.

Not a mass merchant but ALL (aligned) merchant. Can be mapped to many types of shoppers. Channels? That era is old hat. Retail is all channels. There is not unified or omnichannel. Those marketing/analyst buzzwords mean RETAIL as it is TODAY. Omnichannel, etc., is the speak of OLD retail. Aligned merchant is the talk of the new game. Aligned with shopper tastes, age group, channel and many more granular traits of a human shopper.

Macy’s: Innovative and getting a lead on the next phase of retail — the ALL phase.

Gordon Arnold
Gordon Arnold
8 years ago

Macy’s would do well to research the economic condition of the Millennial generation. After getting a handle on the income, savings, debt and credit-worthiness of the generation they are burning to do business with, the company’s information needs will be largely uncovered.

It is no secret to the banking and insurance businesses that this generation is a marketing opportunity with very limited scope and growth. The top qualifiers when looking at the for sales reports in print on this subject matter is total overall population and individual age.

Another pressure point that needs to be addressed is the economic downward resettlement of Generation X. This generation saw the largest losses expressed as a percentage of total holdings for income, investments and savings starting in fiscal year 2004 through to today. This may prove to be a little more gloomy than initially anticipated but is necessary to identify and understand current failures and to plan or refine current plans for a successful path in the chosen retail sector(s) in the near future.

Kai Clarke
Kai Clarke
8 years ago

Perhaps this will help Macy’s in reaching some Millennials, but not the bulk of Millennials. Macy’s needs to recognize the role that aggressive pricing plays in this group and either adjust their product mix or shift their price policies so that it attracts this group.

Lee Kent
Lee Kent
8 years ago

This will certainly get some attention. One of the takeaways I got from NRF and other events I have attended is that Millennials do want to shop in stores but the stores aren’t giving them what they want. Shopping is boring these days. These young people thrive on distraction, so give it to them! This might be right up that alley.

And that’s my 2 cents

Li McClelland
Li McClelland
8 years ago

So they’re going to partner with Etsy and feature items that will specifically be chosen to attract and appeal to millennials? Sounds cool. But then, haven’t all retailers been trying hard to choose and feature items and selections to get Millennials to buy — but mostly missing the shot? Yes, the partnership announcement is getting Macy’s and One Below in the news cycle (something they’re very good at) but I don’t really see how this is this going to be different or end differently when it comes to Millennials parting with their money for anything except electronics.

Kenneth Leung
Kenneth Leung
8 years ago

It will help, but Etsy appeals to a segment of the Millennial only and actually have a broader appeal. I am looking at the photo and it looks like a traditional department store display with Etsy singnage, rather than something that really showcases the styling that Millennials want in a shopping experience. Would be curious to see one of the displays in person.

Craig Sundstrom
Craig Sundstrom
8 years ago

That’s nice … perhaps … for Herald Square. But I don’t see it translating into Macy’s 700+ other stores for the obvious reason that “one-of-a-kind” items, by definition, can’t be offered in multiple locations. This seems like one of those ideas they have to try, but without much likely to come of it.

Karen McNeely
Karen McNeely
8 years ago

Having the Etsy shop in Herald Square may bring Millennials into that location, but that is just one store out of about 700. It does nothing for its other locations.

I don’t know how they would overcome that hurdle. By the very nature of artisan goods it is impossible to expand these vendors nationwide as they don’t have the capacity for that volume. It would be too cumbersome for them to create an Etsy strategy even for every major market they are in.

I applaud Macy’s for realizing they need to do something. This just isn’t it.

Vahe Katros
Vahe Katros
8 years ago

Will homemade items from Etsy help Macy’s solve it’s challenges reaching Millennial’s? Yes for sure! Etsy is a great brand — I can imagine their pop-up as kind of a museum of modern maker-culture merchandise. Etsy fronts merchandise that can capture attention, especially among people who “love” beautiful things that are not mass produced.

I think another noteworthy takeaway is that Macy’s leadership is a big shot at this — they are going for it and built out an entire floor and in the process are turning an amazing retail mecca into a learning lab. But think of it as a two way street — vendors can and should use this as an opportunity to learn. That is a trend we are seeing among retailers who are looking for answers to showrooming. One last thing: Macy’s didn’t tell Gimbels, but they also didn’t have YouTube or Instagram so it will be interesting to see what “Millennials” publish.

Retailers don’t have a Millennial challenge, we have a retailing challenge.

William Hogben
William Hogben
8 years ago

For many Millennials, department stores in general and Macy’s in specific conjure black and white images of their grandparents shopping in the heyday of fancy hats. It’s very smart of Macy’s to combat that image with Etsy — whose peer to peer retail evokes individuality, community and artistry. If Macy’s picks up those associations, it will be good for them — and this is a great move for Etsy as well: by aligning with Macy’s, they improve their reputation for quality and luxury — two things that “homemade” doesn’t typically connote.