Macy’s is one of the most famous department stores for a reason—they offer stellar sales, designer brands, and everything from bedding to the perfect winter coat. The retailer was founded in 1858 and has since expanded to more than 500 stores. Headquartered in the middle of Manhattan, it also has worldwide recognition for its namesake Thanksgiving Day Parade. But whether you shop online from afar or check out the location in your local mall, there are certain things that only those on the inside know about. Keep reading to hear five warnings from ex-Macy's employees.
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1 | Beware of the holiday sales.
Sundry Photography / ShutterstockMacy’s has incredible sales (think Michael Kors dresses for $20 instead of $200), but sometimes around the holidays, the deals might not be as great as they seem. User @ArevFTW tweeted that when they worked at Macy’s on Black Friday, some items weren’t actually discounted. "They had us replace all of the regular price tags with DOOR BUSTER signs and the price was the exact same. People lost their minds for the $19.99 George Foreman grill that was regularly priced $19.99." While the sales are usually worth it, it’s definitely important to check prices if something seems fishy. Simply pull up the item online to confirm the discount.
2 | Employees are always on the lookout for shoplifters for this reason.
damann / ShutterstockBeing wrongfully accused of stealing is never pleasant, but the reason it might be happening at Macy's is that employees occasionally receive a reward for catching shoplifters. "When I worked at Macys, they encouraged that we tattle on shoplifters, there was even a monetary reward sometimes," tweeted user @domdodobird. So, just in case, you might want to keep your receipt handy when exiting the store.
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3 | There's a hook to sign you up for a credit card.
damann / ShutterstockMacy’s wants to incentivize people to get its credit card, which means that the only way to get the most major discounts is by using the card. "I literally used to tell them at check out their total, and then say 'With a Macy's card, you could save $xx.xx!' said Redditor MamaBear1109. "Usually, if you give them a dollar amount their [sic] more likely to try."
But you should also be aware that to keep getting those great deals, you'll have to shop regularly. In a separate Reddit thread, a former employee noted that "they close cards due to inactivity after about a year."
4 | Employees will also pressure you to get the card.
ShutterstockOf course, there's no point in incentivizing the credit card if shoppers don't know about it. That's why employees have sign-up goals they need to meet. "I hated how much credit cards are pushed especially when majority of the people shopping already have them so meeting that goal ****ed," a former sales associate wrote on Indeed. Another ex-employee shared that the credit card quota varies by store, so some locations might be more aggressive about it than others.
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5 | You probably don't know that you can reuse coupons during this sale.
Popova Valeriya / ShutterstockYouTube user linh7x made a video about her time working at Macy’s as a part-time sales associate and shared that the one-day sales actually last from Saturday to Sunday. When these sales come up, you may get a flier in the mail that advertises what's being marked down and also provides you with coupons. "A lot of the one-day sales typically don’t work with coupons, because that’s how they get you," she explains, citing Levi's as an example of a brand that you can rarely double up discounts for. However, since the "one-day" sale is two days, even though the coupons say in the fine print that they're single-use, employees have to give them back to you to use the following day. "Theoretically, you could use them over and over and over again," she adds.
