Macy's Tries Two New Prototypes

Macy's recently opened two prototypes of widely different formats in San Juan, P.R., and West Palm Beach, Fla.

The Puerto Rico unit, located in the 1.8 million-square-foot Plaza Las Americas mall, cost $55 million to build, about 30 percent more than the average Macy's because of higher shipping costs for materials and supplies. Hal Kahn, chair and ceo of Macy's East, says The three-floor, 275,000-square-foot store might become the model for future overseas roll-outs, depending on its success, or lack thereof, over the next year. The company expects the store to become one of the top 10 volume producers in the 90-unit Macy's East chain.

The 100,000-square-foot Florida unit is more compact than most Macy's stores. The two levels are focused on a young crowd, offering brands like Doll House, Necessary Objects, Hard Candy, Nautica and Polo. An easy-to-navigate layout was designed to provide a quicker shopping experience than most of the chain's department stores, which usually range from 200,000 to 300,000 square feet. And a dome ceiling indicates designers paid more attention to architecture in the new design.