Suzanne Kappner

Well, the answer is really twofold.

One, it is actually because rivals are failing that is giving Bloomingdale's an edge to win over consumers and brands.

When Saks and its sister companies, Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman, filed for bankruptcy in January, that really opened up a lot of business that Bloomingdale's has been able to take advantage of.

But it goes beyond that.

They have laid in place a strategy to elevate Bloomingdale's, to rejuvenate it, to make it the exciting place to shop that it was during its heyday in the 1970s and 80s.

And that includes renovating stores, adding new luxury brands like Christian Louboutin, and doing more immersive marketing events to make the shopping experience more like theater.

Well, in part because of the troubles at Saks, Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman.

Those chains are sort of the true pinnacle of luxury department store retailing in the U.S.,

So if they're already selling in Sachs and Neiman Marcus, they probably don't need to be in Bloomingdale's.

But now the dynamics have shifted and brands are a little more open to looking at alternative venues to distribute their products.

And Bloomingdale's has really risen to the occasion.

They are discounting less.

They are giving the brands more freedom to express their vision in in-store shops.

They're sharing more data with the brands to try to create a true partnership.

Coming out of the pandemic,

Sales across the industry slowed around 2023.

You saw some of the biggest names like LVMH and Kering, which owns Gucci.

Sales were falling in negative territory for some of these brands for a while.

You still had players like Hermes putting up positive sales.

So there were bright spots.