| Macy's Herald Square | |
|---|---|
 Exterior of Macy's Herald Square (2014) | |
 Interactive map of Macy's Herald Square | |
| General information | |
| Status | Open |
| Type | |
| Architectural style | |
| Location | 151 West 34th Street,New York City,New York, United States |
| Coordinates | 40°45′01″N73°59′18″W / 40.75028°N 73.98833°W /40.75028; -73.98833 |
| Current tenants | Macy's |
| Named for | Rowland Hussey Macy |
| Years built |
|
| Opened | 1902; 123 years ago (1902) |
| Renovated | 2012–2015 |
| Renovation cost | US$400 million |
| Client | |
| Technical details | |
| Size | 2.5 million square feet (230,000 m2) |
| Floor area | 1.25 million square feet (116,000 m2) of selling space |
| Design and construction | |
| Architects |
|
| Architecture firm | De Lemos & Cordes |
| Renovating team | |
| Renovating firm | |
| Other information | |
| Public transit access |   New York City Subway:         at34th Street–Herald Square[1] |
| Website | |
| Store information | |
R. H. Macy and Company Store | |
 Exterior of the R. H. Macy and Company Store (1907) | |
     | |
| NRHP reference No. | 78001873 |
| NYSRHP No. | 06101.001712 |
| Significant dates | |
| Designated NRHP | June 2, 1978[3] |
| Designated NHL | June 2, 1978[4] |
| Designated NYSRHP | June 23, 1980[2] |
Macy's Herald Square (originally named theR. H. Macy and Company Store) is adepartment store building on West34th Street atHerald Square inNew York City, New York, United States. It was designed by A. W. Cordes andTheodore de Lemos forIsidor andNathan Straus, and opened in 1902; expansions designed byRobert D. Kohn opened in 1924, 1928, and 1931, and completed the present-day building. It is the flagship store of theMacy's department store chain, and the headquarters of its holding companyMacy's, Inc. The store spans 2.5 million square feet (230,000 m2),[5] of which 1.25 million square feet (116,000 m2) is selling space, making it the largest department store in the United States and one of the largest in the world. It was added to theNational Register of Historic Places and was made aNational Historic Landmark in 1978.[3][4][6]
Macy's was founded byRowland Hussey Macy, who between 1843 and 1855 opened four retaildry goods stores, including the original Macy's store in downtownHaverhill, Massachusetts, established in 1851 to serve the mill industry employees of the area. They all failed, but he learned from his mistakes. He moved toNew York City in 1858 and established a new store named "R.H Macy Dry Goods" atSixth Avenue on the corner of14th Street. On the company's first day of business on October 28, 1858, sales totaled$11.08,equivalent to $401.95 today. From the very beginning, Macy's logo has included a star in one form or another, echoing a red star-shaped tattoo that Macy got as a teenager when he worked on a Nantucket whaling ship.[7][8]
As the business grew, Macy's expanded into neighboring buildings, opening more department stores, and used publicity devices such as a storeSanta Claus, themed exhibits, and illuminated window displays to draw in customers.[9] The store later moved to18th Street andBroadway, on the "Ladies' Mile", the elite shopping district of the time, where it remained for nearly forty years.
In 1875, Macy took on two partners, Robert M. Valentine (1850–1879), a nephew; and Abiel T. La Forge (1842–1878) ofWisconsin, who was the husband of a cousin.[10][11] Macy died just two years later in 1877 fromBright's disease.[12] La Forge died in 1878 and Valentine died in 1879.[10][11] Ownership of the company was passed down through the Macy family until 1895, when the company, now called "R. H. Macy & Co.", was acquired byIsidor Straus and his brotherNathan Straus, who had previously held a license to sell china and other goods in the Macy's store.
In 1902, the flagship store moved uptown toHerald Square at34th Street and Broadway, so far north of the other main dry-goods emporia that it had to offer a steam wagonette to transport customers from 14th Street to 34th Street.[13] Although the Herald Square store initially consisted of just one building, it expanded through new construction, eventually occupying almost the entire block bounded bySeventh Avenue on the west, Broadway on the east, 34th Street on the south and35th Street on the north, with the exception of a small pre-existing building on the corner of 35th Street and Seventh Avenue and another on the corner of 34th Street and Broadway. Robert H. Smith purchased this latter 5-story building in 1900 for $375,000 (equivalent to $11,589,901 in 2024) with the idea of getting in the way of Macy's becoming the largest store in the world: it is largely supposed that Smith, who was a neighbor of the Macy's store on 14th Street, was acting on behalf ofSiegel-Cooper, which had built what they thought was the world's largest store on Sixth Avenue in 1896. Macy's ignored the tactic, and simply built around the building, which now carries Macy's "shopping bag" sign by lease arrangement.[14] That building earned the nameMillion Dollar Corner when it was finally sold for a then record $1 million on December 6, 1911.[15]
The original Broadway store was designed in 1901 and 1902 by architectsTheodore de Lemos and A. W. Cordes under their architecture firm De Lemos & Cordes, and was erected by theFuller Construction Company. It has aPalladianfacade, but has been updated in many details. The main entrance on 34th Street features two pairs ofcaryatids by theScottish-American sculptor,J. Massey Rhind.[16] Other additions to the west were completed in 1924 and 1928, and the Seventh Avenue building in 1931, all designed by architectRobert D. Kohn, the newer buildings becoming increasinglyArt Deco in style.[14][17] The store boasts several wooden escalators still in operation.
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In 2012, Macy's began the first full renovation of the flagship store at a reported cost of $400 million (~$539 million in 2024).[18][19]Studio V Architecture, a New York-based firm, was the overall master plan architect of the project, withKevin Kennon Architects providing the exterior and entryway designs. The renovations completed in November 2015 but Macy's continues to modify the store to suit changing customer tastes and maximize return on the real estate.[20]
In 2016, the company explored adding one or two towers to the building to house hotel or office space. The next year, it considered turning the structure's roof into a park.[21][22] Macy's unveiled plans in 2019 to build a 1.2-million-square-foot (110,000 m2) office building atop the existing store.[23][24] The following February, the plans were updated: the tower would be over 900 feet (270 m) tall and consist of 1.5 million square feet (140,000 m2) of space, including a sky lobby. The tower's construction would also include improvements to the nearby area.[25][26]
In August 2014, Macy's agreed to a $650,000 penalty proposed by theNew York Attorney General to settle a number of claims of racial profiling and false detention involving nearly two dozen African-American, Latino and other customers at the Herald Square store who had lodged complaints in February 2013. As part of the deal, the retail group agreed to introduce policies to ensure all customers were treated equally regardless of race or ethnicity.[27]
On June 1–2, 2020, during theGeorge Floyd protests in New York City, 17 people attempted to loot Macy's Herald Square as part of a series of looting incidents around Midtown Manhattan but were thwarted by NYPD. The store had been boarded up on May 31 in advance of the protests, but looters took the boards apart.[28][29] Though physical damage was limited,The New York Times reported that it was symbolic of Macy's financial troubles, which had resulted after the location was forced to close during theCOVID-19 pandemic in New York City.[30]
Macy's is noted for its elaborate animated holiday andChristmas window displays in many of its U.S. stores, but most notably at the Herald Square location. Each year presents a different theme shown in six windows on the Broadway side of the building. Each window includes animated displays with complex scenery, attracting thousands of viewers. Since 2012, the windows have been designed, fabricated and animated by Standard Transmission Productions,[31][32][33] based inRed Hook, Brooklyn.
In summer 2007, Macy's mounted a public art exhibition at the Herald Square flagship, using its windows to display pieces from fashion designersMisaki Kawai,Anna Sui, andJohn F. Simon Jr.Art Under Glass was viewable to the public through that year'sfashion week.[34]
Other events include:
Through a partnership with tech retailerb8ta, "The Market @ Macy's" section featurespop-up spaces for new brands.[39]
The store has an in-store jail, Room 140, where customers suspected of shoplifting are detained.[40]
