Claire’s, the inexpensive jeweler where you may have left your kids to get their ears pierced, is teaming up with Macy’s to open fashion accessory boutiques inside the legendary mall.
For decades, Claire’s may have been considered one of the standard chain stores located online in just about every mall in America, including the Mall of America. Malls are also where you’ll frequently find Macy’s, but as an “anchor store” with one of the best locations at the end of the hall.
The two come together Claire’s announces opening at more than 20 Macy’s, including these flagship stores in Herald Square and Roosevelt Field in New York; South Coast Plaza in Los Angeles, Union Square in San Francisco; and Dadeland and Aventura in Miami.
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In these in-store stores, seasonal products will be available as well as jewelry, hair accessories and cosmetics throughout the year. Iconic for its storefront piercing services, Claire’s owns and operates 2,300 stores in North America and Europe, as well as 300 franchise units in the Middle East and South Africa. Macy’s operates more than 500 stores.
“Macy’s and Claire’s are two iconic fashion brands with a long-standing commitment to being the destination of inspiring and accessible style for generations of consumers,” said Ryan Vero, CEO of Claire’s. “We help celebrate special moments, and with this partnership, we’re combining our brand power to reach new customers and bring them the latest on-trend accessories in time for the holiday season and beyond.”
The store-in-a-store concept of Claire’s-Macy’s is not new to department stores. For decades, many department stores and big-box stores have leased space to all manner of third-party retailers for shoes, jewelry, and cosmetics, among other departments. But brands operating under their true corporate identity, outside of fast food outlets and cafes (think Starbucks in Target, for example), were less common.
Increasingly, shoppers are seeing more and more branded companies partnering with department stores and the like. Sephora had stores in a store at Macy’s as well as 600 Kohl’s; Macy’s has raised Toys R Us from the dead more than once, opening stores labeled Toys R Us inside Macy’s stores. And, as we told you, Apple stores are popping up at Target stores and even the Netflix streamer has put your brand in Walmart stores.