# Bloomingdale's

Bloomingdale's Inc. is an American luxury department store chain founded in 1861 by Joseph Bloomingdale and Lyman Bloomingdale. It was acquired by Federated Department Stores in 1930, which purchased the Macy’s department store chain in 1994, when they became sister brands. Ultimately, Federated itself was renamed Macy’s, Inc. in 2007.
As of 2024, the chain had a total of 32 owned department stores in the U.S. and 3 franchised stores in Dubai and Kuwait; 21 outlet stores (all in the U.S.), and 4 Bloomie's by Bloomingdales concept stores.
Its headquarters and flagship store are located at 59th Street and Lexington Avenue in the New York City borough of Manhattan.

## History
### 19th century
#### Founding (1861)

The first Bloomingdale's was founded in New York City by Benjamin Bloomingdale and his son Lyman Bloomingdale in 1861 in its Lower East Side area, originally under the name Bloomingdale's Hoopskirts, initially focused on selling hoop skirts and European fashions. The brothers quickly identified opportunities for growth and expansion in the dynamic retail landscape of the time.In 1872, Lyman and his brother Joseph opened a second location called Bloomingdale's Great East Side Bazaar in Midtown Manhattan at 965 Third Avenue, between 56th & 57th Sts. The Bazaar later moved into three adjacent buildings further up the block before finally moving into a building at 59th St. and Third Avenue, where its flagship store remains today.

#### Relocations and expansion (1860s-1890s)

In the subsequent years, Bloomingdale's underwent a series of relocations and expansions. The brothers moved the store from its original location to a larger space on 59th Street and Third Avenue. As the business flourished, necessitating more significant retail space, the store moved once again to its iconic location at 59th Street and Lexington Avenue in 1886. This move marked a turning point, solidifying the store's position as a prominent retail destination.
In 1872, the store changed its name to "Bloomingdale's", reflecting the family name but also symbolized the flourishing and growth of their business.
Joseph Bloomingdale retired from the company in 1896, giving his brother Lyman full control, and Lyman's sons Hiram and Samuel inherited his shares upon his death in 1905.

### 20th century

As the 20th century dawned, Bloomingdale's embraced innovative retail practices. The introduction of the department store window display in the late 19th century set a trend, making the store more visually appealing and attracting attention from passersby. This approach contributed to the store's reputation for being fashion-forward.
By 1902, the store grew to occupy 80 percent of the city block between 58th St. and 59th St. to the north and south, and Third Avenue and Lexington Avenue to the east and west.
After the New York City Subway debuted, the store's primary entrance was shifted to its Lexington Avenue side in 1918 to draw customers coming from the nearby IRT Lexington Avenue Line stop at 59th Street and Lexington Avenue. Given that the U.S. was involved in World War I, Samuel Bloomingdale gave the American Red Cross free use of an entire floor there until the war ended. By 1927, after acquiring all the remaining portions along it, Bloomingdale's controlled 100 percent of the block, expanding the store's size to 84,000 square feet (later nearly quadrupled via newly added floor space).
Like most publicly traded companies, Bloomingdale's faced severe financial problems following the Black Tuesday stock market crash in 1929, and it merged with the newly created Federated Department Stores in early 1930, which helped it survive the Great Depression.

#### 1945–1959: American designers and fashion influence

After World War II, Bloomingdale's played a crucial role in shaping post-war American fashion. The store actively engaged with European designers and trends, as well as promoting American designers, and was an influencer in fashion trends and the evolution of American fashion sensibilities. This period marked a phase of continued growth and influence for Bloomingdale's, solidifying its status as a premier department store. By the 1950s, Bloomingdale's had become an established and influential retail institution. The store's commitment to offering a wide range of high-quality merchandise and its role in shaping fashion trends laid the foundation for its continued growth and legacy in the decades to come.

#### First branch stores

In 1947, and tandem with America's economic boom after World War II, Bloomingdale's opened its first store outside of Manhattan in New Rochelle, a New York City suburb, where it assumed control of the former Ware's Department Store. After concluding that using pre-existing buildings could have been a better fit with its tried-and-true floor layouts, the company debuted its first custom-built store in 1949, located in the Fresh Meadows neighborhood across the East River in Queens. Over 25,000 people visited on its first day of business. A store in Stamford, Connecticut followed, and then in 1959, Bloomingdale's opened its store in Hackensack, New Jersey, along the banks of the Hackensack River. The store was designed by architect William T. Snaith of the firm Loewy Associates. In 1977, a mall now called The Shops at Riverside was constructed along the southern and eastern facades of the Bloomingdale's store, which was also enlarged.

#### 1960-1975

During the 1960s, Bloomingdale's shifted its merchandise mix to incorporate haute couture fashions imported from Paris and home furnishings from Italy. It also launched its first single designer-specific department in 1969, for Halston, one that was quickly followed later that year by a dedicated Polo Ralph Lauren boutique in its men's store. By the early 1970s, Bloomingdale's had begun embracing avant-garde European design, and following the United Nations recognition of China in 1971, it became the first American retailer to sell products from Communist-era China. Its iconic rounded logo debuted in 1972, followed a year later by its "Big Brown Bag" and "Little Brown Bag," all of which remain in use today. Bloomingdale's continued to thrive throughout the 1970s, despite New York City's turbulence at the time, partly via continued expansions into the suburbs. Its largest branch opened in White Plains, New York in 1975, with 260,000 square feet of floor space, and shortly after that, Bloomingdale's shuttered its original, but much smaller, New Rochelle branch.

#### Expansion beyond New York area

In 1976, Bloomingdale's launched its first full-line department store outside of the New York City area in Tysons, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, D.C.. The First Lady at the time, Betty Ford, attended its opening as its guest of honor.
In 1981, Bloomingdale's opened a branch at the King of Prussia Mall in suburban Philadelphia, then the largest mall in the world. Other new stores opened as well, along the East Coast, Florida, Chicago, and in Dallas, Texas. In 1988, Canadian real estate developer Robert Campeau launched a hostile takeover attempt of the company, successfully acquiring it for $6.6 billion: it was the largest non-oil corporate merger ever at the time.

#### Economic challenges (1990s)

Bloomingdale's faced continued economic challenges in the early 1990s, resulting in the closures of its Dallas, Fresh Meadows, and Stamford, Connecticut locations. In 1994, Federated Stores acquired the entire Macy's chain, which had been in bankruptcy for two years. In November 1996, Bloomingdale's expanded to California, converting four former stores of The Broadway. Bloomingdale's continued growth and shuttering of duplicative locations stemming from Macy's merger.

### 21st century

In 2004, the company returned once again to downtown Manhattan, opening an 82,000-square-foot store – featuring an "edited" selection of the flagship store's offerings – in SoHo.
In 2007, Bloomingdale’s expanded into San Diego (Fashion Valley) and Costa Mesa (South Coast Plaza), once again by replacing former Robinsons-May stores that closed in 2006, in each case because there were already existing Macy's stores in each mall. In 2006, Bloomingdale's opened its largest store save its Manhattan flagship in San Francisco's Union Square, 330,000 sq ft (31,000 m$^2$) in area.
On June 1, 2007, Federated Stores changed its corporate name to Macy's, given its more robust name recognition, but left its Bloomingdale's store names intact.
On February 14, 2008, parent company Macy's, Inc. announced plans to enter the Phoenix market with a 180,000-square-foot store by 2009. Arizona would have been the thirteenth state to have a Bloomingdale's store location, with this store being the tenth in the western U.S. and 41st throughout the chain. This store never materialized as a result of the Great Recession in 2008 and 2009.
In May 2008, Bloomingdale's began the phase-out of its Bloomingdale's By Mail catalog to greater emphasize its rapidly growing online presence at bloomingdales.com. On September 10, 2008, Macy's announced plans to open three new Bloomingdale's stores, two modeled after its SoHo store. One was intended to be a three-level 82,000-square-foot (7,600 m$^2$) anchor store at The Shops at Georgetown Park in Washington, D.C., but the plan collapsed after the mall's parent company declared bankruptcy. The other two stores were completed, including a new 150,000 sq ft (14,000 m$^2$) branch at Westfield Valley Fair in San Jose, California, and a 205,000 sq ft (19,000 m$^2$) store in Santa Monica Place, in Santa Monica, CA. The latter debuted in early 2010. San Jose's debut was delayed until 2020, primarily due to the Great Recession, and Santa Monica closed in 2021 due to subpar performance.
In February 2010, Macy's launched Bloomingdale's first international location in Dubai. As is the case for rival Saks Fifth Avenue, the global presence for Bloomingdale's is operated under license by a local interest: in this case, Al Tayer Group LLC, a leading UAE-based conglomerate. Bloomingdale's CEO announced that the Dubai store would most likely be the only store outside of the U.S. (The company's leaders later had a change of heart, and opened a branch in Kuwait in 2017.) Later in 2010, the company launched its first outlet store at Potomac Mills, located outside of Washington, D.C.
In 2012, Macy's Inc. closed four Bloomingdale's stores, one each in the Minneapolis (Mall of America), Atlanta (Perimeter), Washington DC (White Flint), and Chicago (Oak Brook) areas.
In late 2019, Macy's announced that fur would no longer be sold in any of its stores, including Bloomingdale's department & outlet stores, as of the end of the 2020 fiscal year.
As part of an initiative to better establish its New York flagship store as a "retail destination," designed to allure shoppers who primarily purchase department store goods online, Bloomingdale's introduced new departments and offerings throughout the decade, including a branch of Magnolia Bakery and a boutique for Sarah Jessica Parker's SJC Collection shoe line. It was the first department store in New York to offer the latter. In 2018 and 2019, Bloomingdale's remodeled nearly 200,000 square feet inside the store, wholly revamping its denim, cosmetics, shoes, and women's contemporary clothing departments.
In March 2020, Macy's, Inc. announced that it would temporarily close all Bloomingdale's and Macy's locations as a result of the rapidly spreading COVID-19 pandemic. Its original plan to reopen at the end of March quickly evaporated due to the pandemic's rapid spread, as did its intent to do so by the end of April 2020: as was the case with most brick-and-mortar retailers, Macy's ended up closing some of its stores for a year or more, with reopening days that varied depending on their locations. Some did not reopen until late 2021.
On September 9, 2022, Bloomingdale's celebrated its 150th anniversary, featuring a variety of special events and unique merchandise offerings through the end of the year at its Manhattan flagship location.

## Timeline of department store openings

| Year Opened/ Closed | Year Opened/ Closed | # | Mall or district | City | Metro Area | State (US) or country | Gross floor area (sq ft) | Type | Remarks |
| 1886 | open | 1 | 59th Street | New York | New York | New York | 850,000 | L | |
| 1947 | 1977 | | 554 Main Street | New Rochelle | New York | New York | 110,000 | | Building was previously Ware's Dept. Store. Closed in 1977 after nearby White Plains store opened in 1975. Functioned for a time afterwards as a furniture outlet. |
| 1949 | 1991 | | Fresh Meadows | Queens | New York | New York | 149,000 | | At opening, 106,325 sq.ft., did not sell furniture or large appliances. Two stories plus basement. Architects Voorhees, Walker, Foley and Smith. Town-and-country suburban architectural theme, grey brick, white marble. |
| 1954 | 1990 | | Stamford | Stamford | New York | Connecticut | | | The only Bloomingdale's in Connecticut in its 36 years. |
| 1959 | open | 5 | Shops at Riverside | Hackensack | New York | New Jersey | 292,000 | O | |
| 1967 | open | 6 | Short Hills | Short Hills | New York | New Jersey | 246,000 | GL | Opened on September 15 |
| 1971 | 1982 | | Manhasset furniture store | Manhasset, L.I. | New York | New York | | | Closed after the opening of nearby store in Garden City |
| 1971 | 1982 | | Eastchester furniture store | Eastchester | New York | New York | | | Closed after the opening of nearby store in White Plains |
| 1973 | open | 11 | Mall at Chestnut Hill Home/Men's | Chestnut Hill | Boston | Massachusetts | 124,000 | O | |
| 1975 | open | 12 | White Plains | White Plains | New York | New York | 296,000 | O | Opened on September 16 with four levels. |
| 1976 | open | 14 | Tysons Corner Center | McLean | Washington DC | Virginia | 268,000 | L | |
| 1981 | open | 16 | King of Prussia (Court) | King of Prussia | Philadelphia | Pennsylvania | 250,000 | O | Opened on August 2 as Bloomingdale's first full-line store in the Philadelphia market. |
| 1982 | open | 17 | Willow Grove Park Mall | Willow Grove | Philadelphia | Pennsylvania | 239,000 | O | Opened on August 4 before the shopping mall itself. |
| 1983 | 1990 | | Valley View Center | Dallas | Dallas–Ft. Worth | Texas | 220,378 | | Closed due to subpar performance. |
| 1986 | open | 2 | Town Center at Boca Raton | Boca Raton | Miami-FtL-WPB | Florida | 270,000 | O | Opened on October 29 with a mall expansion. |
| 1988 | open | 8 | 900 North Michigan Ave. | Chicago | Chicago | Illinois | 270,000 | L | Opened on September 24. |
| 1995 | open | 27 | Roosevelt Field | Garden City | New York | New York | 314,000 | L | Opened on November 3. The only Bloomingdale's to open in the space of a former A&S store. |
| 1996 | open | 28 | Century City | Los Angeles | Los Angeles | California | 232,000 | L | Opened on November 9 in the space of a former The Broadway store as the first Bloomingdale's location in Southern California. |
| 1996 | open | 30 | Fashion Island | Newport Beach | Los Angeles | California | 172,000 | GL | Opened on November 14 in the space of a former The Broadway store. |
| 1996 | open | 29 | Sherman Oaks | Sherman Oaks | Los Angeles | California | 228,000 | O | Opened on November 16 in the space of a former The Broadway store. |
| 1997 | open | 30 | Fashion Island Home | Newport Beach | Los Angeles | California | 68,000 | L | Opened in March. |
| 1997 | open | 32 | Beverly Center | Los Angeles | Los Angeles | California | 163,000 | L | Opened in March in the space of a former The Broadway store. |
| 1997 | open | 3 | Aventura Mall | Aventura | Miami-FtL-WPB | Florida | 252,000 | GL | Opened on November 8. |
| 1998 | open | 4 | Walt Whitman Mall | Huntington | New York | New York | 231,000 | L | Opened in the former original space of Macy's who had two locations in the mall for some time in 1995 due to the A&S store being renamed. |
| 2002 | open | 24 | Bridgewater Commons | Bridgewater | New York | New Jersey | 161,000 | L | Opened on April 13 in the space of a former Stern's store. |
| 2002 | open | 20 | Mall at Millenia | Orlando | Orlando | Florida | 236,000 | O | Original anchor store |
| 2002 | open | 37 | Willowbrook | Wayne | New York | New Jersey | 255,000 | O | Opened on April 13 in the space of a former Stern's store. |
| 2002 | 2013 | | Fashion Show Mall Home Store | Las Vegas | Las Vegas | Nevada | | | Closed with five other stores (all Macy's locations). |
| 2003 | open | 55 | Lenox Square | Atlanta | Atlanta | Georgia | 281,000 | L | Opened in the space of a former Macy's store. |
| 2003 | 2020 | | Medinah Temple | Chicago | Chicago | Illinois | | | Home and Furniture Store in a historic building in the Near North Side, Chicago. June 2019 sold building to Chicago developer Al Friedman. Vacated September 2020. |
| 2004 | open | 53 | Soho | New York | New York | New York | 121,000 | L | |
| 2006 | open | 61 | Fashion Valley | San Diego | San Diego–Tijuana | California | 225,000 | GL | |
| 2006 | open | 11 | Mall at Chestnut Hill Women's | Chestnut Hill | Boston | Massachusetts | 186,000 | O | |
| 2006 | open | 22 | San Francisco Centre | San Francisco | San Francisco Bay Area | California | 335,000 | O | |
| 2007 | open | 62 | South Coast Plaza | Costa Mesa | Los Angeles | California | 291,000 | O | |
| 2007 | open | 34 | Wisconsin Place | Chevy Chase | Washington DC | Maryland | 190,000 | O | |
| 2010 | 2021 | | Santa Monica Place | Santa Monica | Los Angeles | California | 205,000 | | Closed due to subpar performance |
| 2010 | open | n/a | Dubai Mall | Dubai | Dubai | UAE | 146,000 | F | Main store |
| 2010 | open | n/a | Dubai Mall | Dubai | Dubai | UAE | 54,000 | F | Home store |
| 2013 | open | 60 | Glendale Galleria | Glendale | Los Angeles | California | 112,000 | L | Opened as part of the mall's remodel, replacing Mervyn's. |
| 2014 | open | 31 | Stanford Shopping Center | Palo Alto | San Francisco Bay Area | California | 124,000 | GL | |
| 2015 | open | 58 | Ala Moana Center | Honolulu | Honolulu | Hawaiʻi | 164,000 | L | On November 12, 2015, Bloomingdale's opened its first store in Hawaii. The three-story store replaced a former Sears and includes special services such as smart fitting rooms, charging lounges, and a 40 Carrots restaurant. |
| 2017 | open | n/a | 360 Mall | Al Zahra | Kuwait. | Kuwait | 93,000 | F | |
| 2019 | open | 46 | SoNo Collection | Norwalk | New York | Connecticut | 153,000 | L | |
| 2020 | open | 50 | Samanea Mall | Westbury | New York | New York | 25,000 | L | |
| 2020 | open | 57 | Valley Fair | San Jose | San Francisco Bay Area | California | 144,000 | O | |
| 1992 | 2012 | | Mall of America | Bloomington | Minneapolis–St. Paul | Minnesota | 233,000 | L | On January 4, 2012, Macy's announced it would close these four Bloomingdale's stores. Closed due to subpar performance. |
| 2003 | 2012 | | Oakbrook Center Home Store | Oak Brook | Chicago | Illinois | 93,000 | | On January 4, 2012, Macy's announced it would close these four Bloomingdale's stores. Closed due to subpar performance. |
| 1977 | 2012 | | White Flint Mall | North Bethesda | Washington DC | Maryland | 259,000 | O | On January 4, 2012, Macy's announced it would close these four Bloomingdale's stores. Closed due to subpar performance. |
| 2003 | 2012 | | Perimeter Mall | Dunwoody | Atlanta | Georgia | 234,000 | | On January 4, 2012, Macy's announced it would close these four Bloomingdale's stores. Closed due to subpar performance. |
Notes to Table
Partial list (stores open at end 2023, plus 4 that closed in 2012)
Store Type:
* F = Franchise of Dubai-based Al Tayer Insignia
* GL = Ground Lease - Represents store properties where Macy's was involved with the construction of the building on leased land. Macy's Inc. generally has all of the attributes of ownership of these properties for the term of the lease.
* L = Leased - Represents store properties where Macy's Inc. leases the building and land.
* O = Owned - Represents store properties where Macy's Inc. owns the building and land. May also include a small amount of leased premises, such as additional space, kiosk or small shop real estate.

## Gallery

* Close-up of flagship store entrance in 1981
* East 60th St entrance, New York flagship
* Flagship store during the Christmas season at night
* Westfield Valley Fair in San Jose
* Ala Moana Center in Honolulu
* The Mall at Millenia, Orlando, Florida
* South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa, California
* San Francisco Center
* Stores-in-store at Tysons, Washington DC area
* Dubai Mall, U.A.E.
* Bloomingdale's / بلومينغديلز sign in Arabic, 360 Mall, Kuwait