'Bloomingdale's' is a chain of upscale
American department stores owned by
Macy's, Inc., which is also the parent company of
Macy's. Bloomingdale's has 36 stores nationwide, with annual sales of $1.9 billion dollars. It is at the same average price level with
Lord & Taylor and
Nordstrom, and slightly below that of
Saks Fifth Avenue,
Neiman Marcus, and
Barneys New York.
History
Bloomingdale's started in 1861 when brothers Joseph and Lyman Bloomingdale started selling hoop-skirts in their Ladies Notions' Shop on
Manhattan's
Lower East Side. The pair were sons of Benjamin Bloomingdale, a salesman who had lived in North Carolina and Kansas, and settled in
New York City. The brothers opened their East Side Bazaar in 1872, selling a variety of garments and European fashions. As the store and its success grew, it moved in
1886 to
59th Street and
Lexington Avenue, anticipating and capitalizing on the northern movement of New York's upper and middle classes. By the 1920s, the store covered the entire city block.
Its most famous location is still the Manhattan flagship store located on 59th Street and Lexington Avenue. During
Queen Elizabeth II's visit to New York City in the 1970s, traffic had to be reversed on Lexington Avenue so the Queen could exit her vehicle on its right side and enter the store by its main entrance.
In 1961, the company started marketing itself with designer shopping bags. Bloomingdale's is known for its iconic "Brown Bag," prominently labeled in three sizes: "Little," "Medium,", and "Big," which was the first to debut, in 1973. The bags were designed by
Michael Vollbracht, the current designer for Bill Blass Couture.
Bloomingdale's has expanded slowly from its New York base, moving into
Washington, D.C., and
Massachusetts in the 1970s;
Pennsylvania,
Texas (which did well upon opening but closed because of Chapter 11 bankcruptcy)
[1],
Florida, and
Chicago in the 1980s; and establishing a presence in
California in 1996 with four stores. After several years of struggling at understanding the merchandise needs of the California market, it has recently begun refocusing on the state with high profile openings in 2006 and 2007 in San Francisco, San Diego, and Costa Mesa. The San Francisco and Costa Mesa units were among the most successful openings in the chain's history.
The company has carefully targeted affluent, densely populated areas in which to locate its stores.
Current, future, and former locations
Main articles: List of Bloomingdale's locations
Labor Dispute & Controversies
Bloomingdale's--as well as Macy's--parent company,
Macy's, Inc., is involved in a labor dispute regarding
maquila workers in
Guatemala. Workers in the
Sitracima union allege intimidation and union-busting at their CimaTextiles factory.
[2] On 2 June 2007, a student protest at the downtown Seattle Macy's and
Talbots stores was violently suppressed by Macy's security guards.
Because it is part of Macy's, Inc., Bloomingdale's has also been the subject of a consumer boycott in response to the conversion of Marshall Field's stores to Macy's. The grassroots group FieldsFansChicago.org says the boycott will remain in effect until Marshall Field's is restored as a unique store separate from Macy's and Bloomingdale's.
[3]
Photo gallery
References
1. Bloomingdale Plans Cuts
2. The struggle of the women, and of the Seattle students who work in solidarity with them, is documented at http://maquilaemergency.blogspot.com/
3. Interview on CBS2 Morning News (Chicago), September 7, 2006 and http://www.fieldsfanschicago.org
External links
★
Bloomingdale's Official Website
★
Bloomingdale's Happening in San Francisco Website
★
FieldsFansChicago.org Website
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