department-store
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Holt Renfrew Bet $300 Million That the Future of Luxury Would Be Bigger, Fewer and More Personal
Canada’s old furrier survived by shrinking its map and enlarging the experience. Its useful lesson is not ‘be luxurious’ - it is to spend where digital cannot: trust, taste and human attention.
Frank Berman
Frank Berman is the Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Bloomingdale's, where he has spent his entire 30-plus year career - starting in 1991 as a housewares business manager and rising through buying and loyalty roles to lead marketing for the 150-plus-year-old luxury department store. He built his reputation on keeping the brand 'fun,' framing Bloomingdale's as a place to buy wants not needs, and steering high-profile experiential campaigns from rotating themed pop-ups to the Wicked-themed holiday takeover and the retailer's 150th anniversary gala.
Belk
Belk is a privately held American department store chain founded in 1888 by William Henry Belk in Monroe, North Carolina. Headquartered in Charlotte, it operates roughly 290 stores across about 16 Southeastern states plus belk.com, selling mid-priced national and private-label apparel, shoes, cosmetics, jewelry, accessories and home goods. Marketed under the tagline 'Modern. Southern. Style.,' Belk blends a 130-plus-year Southern retail heritage with an omnichannel model and a portfolio of exclusive private brands.
Century 21 Stores
Century 21 Stores is a New York City off-price fashion retailer, founded in 1961, known for selling designer and luxury apparel, footwear, handbags and accessories at deep discounts. After filing for bankruptcy and closing all 13 locations in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Gindi family reacquired the brand and reopened its Financial District flagship at 22 Cortlandt Street in May 2023. Rebranded 'Century 21 NYC,' the retailer pairs its trademark 'treasure hunt' in-store experience with a growing e-commerce presence, live shopping and a TikTok Shop.
Kohl's
Kohl's is one of the largest department store chains in the United States, operating roughly 1,100 off-mall stores across 49 states plus Kohls.com. Founded in Wisconsin, it sells moderately priced apparel, footwear, accessories, beauty, and home goods to value-conscious families, anchored by its Kohl's Cash and Kohl's Rewards loyalty programs. In recent years it has leaned on partnerships - hosting Sephora shops inside its stores and accepting Amazon returns - to drive traffic while working to reverse a multi-year sales decline.
Macy's
Macy's is one of America's best-known department store chains, founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy in New York City and now the flagship nameplate of Macy's, Inc. (NYSE: M). The company sells apparel, accessories, beauty, cosmetics, footwear and home goods across roughly 450 stores and macys.com, and also operates the higher-end Bloomingdale's and the beauty specialty chain Bluemercury. Anchored by its Herald Square flagship and cultural touchstones like the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and Fourth of July fireworks, Macy's is executing a multiyear turnaround called the 'Bold New Chapter' under CEO Tony Spring.
Nordstrom
Nordstrom is a Seattle-based fashion retailer that began as a single shoe store in 1901 and grew into one of America's best-known department store chains. It sells apparel, shoes, beauty, accessories and home goods across full-line Nordstrom stores, off-price Nordstrom Rack locations, small-format Nordstrom Local service hubs and its digital platforms. Long defined by high-touch customer service and a liberal returns culture, the company returned to family control in May 2025 when the Nordstrom family and Mexican retailer El Puerto de Liverpool took it private in a roughly $6.25 billion deal.
Martine Reardon
Martine Reardon is an American marketing executive best known for a 32-year career at Macy's, where she rose from the special events department to become Chief Marketing Officer from 2012 to 2016. She led a 1,300-person marketing organization spanning advertising, brand, social, mobile and digital media, and she presided over cultural institutions like the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the Fourth of July fireworks. Her teams collected Emmys, Clios, Effies and Reggie awards. After Macy's she joined the National Retail Federation as Chief Marketing Officer and later strategic advisor on content and retail strategy, and she has served on corporate and nonprofit boards including Empire Company / Sobeys and the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Illinois.