Macy's announced the closure of 11 more stores, four of which had been previously disclosed. With those closures, the department store will have completed 81 of the approximately 100 planned store closures announced in August 2016. Macy's also announced the closure of another 19 or so stores as leases or operating covenants expire or as sale transactions are completed [it has shuttered 124 stores since 2015]. The company also said that same-store sales on an owned basis rose 1% percent in November and December 2017. On an owned plus licensed basis, same-store sales rose 1.1% over the same period in 2016. Strong categories were active apparel, shoes, dresses, coats, fine jewelry, men's tailored clothing, children's, home and beauty. The closure announcements come amid an emphasis on cost-cutting that will also include staffing adjustments across the stores organization.

Macy's isn't the only department store struggling with shifts in retail, although it's the one with the biggest physical footprint. Hudson's Bay, like Macy's before it, is under pressure to unload real estate and recently sold its Manhattan Lord & Taylor flagship, not to mention that Sears stores have been falling like dominoes.