Marshall Fields
Macy’s Name Changes: Good Bye Marshall Fields, Hello Mediocrity
Bye, Bye Hecht….
Sayonara Marshall Field’s….
Peace out Lazarus….
Today, September 9, 2006, is the day that pretty much every department store in America becomes a Macy’s.
Even though we signed petitions (keepitfields.org collected close to 60,000, yes 60,000 names), that wasn’t good enough for the corporate heads. According to a fashion industry friend of this blog, Macy’s “researched” the names on the petitions and found that the people on the list were “old” (I’m 30) and we all know that “old” people don’t shop. They sit around eating creamed corn, playing scrabble, and ordering the entire spring collection of the Suzanne Somers line on QVC, letting those “crazy kids” deal with all that fashion babaloo.
A couple of thoughts….
1. Macy’s and Marshall Field’s are not the same place. I grew up in the Midwest, in a city that had both a Macy’s and a Marshall Field’s. Fields is more on par with Bloomingdales than Macy’s.
2. Target is better than Macy’s. Not only are the products better designed, less expensive, and come with a more flexible return policy (90 days), Target is a lot more tech savvy than Macy’s. Try returning something you bought online to a local Macy’s and you’ll see the difference. Apparently, I’m not the only one who thinks so…. Target has been growing at a steady pace, while Macy’s (and department stores in general) have been struggling.
3. People who live in NYC don’t like Macy’s. Every New Yorker I know avoids the Macy’s Herald Square location like the plague and rarely have anything positive to say about the store. While, every Chicagoian (sp?) I know, has fond memories of shopping at the State Street Marshall Field’s, especially during the christmas season.
4. Macy’s is better than Hecht. I’ve been to quite a few Hecht and I must say that the boys at Federated Department Stores was on the money changing this one over to a Macy’s.
For more on the good fight—head to fieldsfanschicago.org
Fashion Advice: Cheap Custom Made Suits For Men
Q:How can I buy custom made men’s suits for off the rack prices?
A:People (including myself) used to believe having a suit custom made meant spending a great deal of cash. However with many rack suits approaching $1000 buck or more, it may be actually cheaper to get your suits custom made. Several high end stores—Nordstroms, Saks, Marshall Fields, Kuhlmans and Bloomingdales—offer reasonably priced custom tailoring services starting around $400 per suit (cost depends on the fabric). If that is still a little too steep for your pockets, head out to your nearest outlet—and visit these stores:
Nordstrom’s Rack—Has an vast selection of men’s suits from designers such as Calvin Klein, Zegna, and Hugo Boss at 40-60% off retail prices.
Off Fifth Ave—Saks Fifth Avenue Outlet—If you like the main store, you will love their outlet. Great prices on men’s suits from Ralph Lauren (not the cheaper Chaps line) to Helmut Lang. It is also a wonderful place to buy male accessories, especially murses (male purses). Bought a beautiful coach Murse there earlier this year for 99 bucks.
The stores above have tailoring departments. It may not be custom made, but getting an $1200 Boss suit tailored to fit you for $325 buck ain’t too shabby.
Last Call Neiman Marcus. Find big savings on suits from Zegna, Hugo Boss, Prada, and more. No on site tailoring, but who cares when you just scored a Hickey Freeman suit for $400.
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