[EXCERPT]
Retail Downturn Rains on Macy's Parade
Department-Store Chain's CEO Says Size Lets it Strike New Deals, Cut Costs to Weather Sales Decline
When Macy's Inc. paid $11.5 billion to acquire rival May Co. in 2005, investors asked whether consolidation could save the department store, or just prolong its decline.So far it looks more like the latter. The company lost $30 million in the first nine month this year on a 4.3% decline in sales. A brutal drop in consumer spending is expected to make the holiday season -- which begins with Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thursday -- the bleakest in nearly two decades, and already has sent smaller competitors into bankruptcy...
Such deals have helped distinguish Macy's from its competitors and improve its image. YouGovPolimetrix, which polls Americans on brand perception, found that over the past 18 months, Macy's reputation has improved more than any department store.
