"Macy's By Mail" Hits Mailboxes This Week; Macy's First-ever Direct Mail Catalog Brings Macy's to Shoppers Coast to Coast.

CINCINNATI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 13, 1998--Millions of American consumers will find something new and different in their mailboxes beginning this week - a Macy's "store without doors" in the form of the newly launched Macy's by Mail fashion and home direct mail catalog.

Among the first 2 million recipients of the inaugural Macy's By Mail catalog will be shoppers in 29 states, many of whom do not have local access to a Macy's department store. The catalog will effectively extend the reach of the famous retail nameplate to markets across the U.S. and internationally.

In the 21 primarily East and West Coast states where Macy's does operate stores, Macy's By Mail will add to the convenience of Macy's department store shopping, making selected Macy's merchandise offerings accessible to customers on a 24-hour basis. In addition, customers will be able to use Macy's credit cards and gift certificates for either store or catalog purchases and, with few exceptions, any item purchased through aMacy's By Mail catalog can be exchanged or returned in person at any of Macy's 186 stores across the country.

Unique Presentation

The Macy's By Mail catalog debuts with 120 pages of women's and men's apparel, as well as items for the home, with offerings encompassing a distinctive blend of designer labels and brands exclusive to Macy's. Subsequent Macy's By Mail catalogs later this year and next will evolve into larger, more encompassing books that eventually will average more than 200 pages. Additional merchandise lines, such as children's, juniors, young men's, petites and women's sizes and special-occasion dressing will be layered into the apparel mix over the coming months, along with fine china, crystal and furniture.

"What makes Macy's By Mail unique among direct mail catalogs is its emphasis on strong brand presentation," said Ronald Ramseyer, president of the Macy's By Mail subsidiary. "The catalog itself is visually appealing and merchandised much like a department store - providing valuable product information and a depth of brand presentation that makes it easy for a customer to put together a complete lifestyle look for a wardrobe or an entire room without turning the page."

Among the designers featured in the first-ever Macy's By Mail catalog are Tommy Hilfiger, who is interviewed in the book, Ralph Lauren, Jones New York and Liz Claiborne. In each case, the catalog spread reflects the designer's own unique lifestyle appeal and look - creating the sense of an in-store boutique within Macy's By Mail.

"It's exciting, it's fresh, it's definitely different and decidedly Macy's," Ramseyer said. "We think people are going to respond very favorably to what we are doing, and at the same time we will be responding as well to what our customers are going to be telling us - more of this, less of that, try this instead. So we see this as a dynamic offering that will evolve over time to meet our customers' expectations - what you see now between the covers of this first Macy's By Mail catalog is only the beginning."

Cost-Effective Execution

Macy's By Mail is operating from a Federated Department Stores, Inc. customer file containing more than 58 million accounts, reaching more than 30 million households nationally. More than 10 million copies will be mailed this fall, with at least 25 million catalogs slated for mailing in 1999 - the catalog's first full year of operation. A significant growth in annual mailings is anticipated beyond that point.

Approximately a dozen different Macy's By Mail catalogs will be developed and mailed in the first full year of operation, including seasonal, special category and sale books.

Fulfillment for Macy's By Mail will be done through Federated's Bloomingdale's By Mail subsidiary, which maintains a major catalog order-taking and merchandise fulfillment center in Cheshire, CT.

The Macy's By Mail merchandising operation utilizes the merchandising resources of Macy's East, benefiting from access to Macy's East merchants and buyers who are assisting the new direct mail catalog. In addition, the catalog is able to draw on the expertise of the Federated Merchandising Group (FMG) for merchandising direction, private brands and product development. Private brand emphasis is a key differentiator of the new Macy's By Mail catalog.

Federated's Financial and Credit Services (FACS) division, based in suburban Cincinnati, will handle credit for the new Macy's By Mail operation, as it does for all Federated divisions.

Other Federated divisions providing operational support to the new catalog include the Federated Systems Group (FSG), which has integrated internal systems to facilitate ordering, purchasing and other facets of the Macy's By Mail operation; Federated Logistics and Operations (FLO), which will assist distribution and logistics as the catalog grows; and Federated Corporate Services, which provides corporate ser