NEW YORK — The holiday season has officially arrived at Macy’s flagship store in Herald Square, where the iconic department store is leaning heavily into festive activations, experiential retail, and major marketing rollouts. As the retailer works to build on recent revenue growth across its portfolio and celebrate a series of milestone anniversaries, its historic New York City location is serving as the centerpiece for a sweeping end-of-year strategy designed to draw holiday shoppers through its doors.
At the heart of the seasonal push is a newly launched national marketing campaign titled “There’s Magic Inside.” The publicity initiative is designed to capture the emotional core of holiday shopping by emphasizing discovery, family traditions, and the shared experiences that define the winter months. To bring the campaign to life, Macy’s has rolled out a comprehensive series of gift recommendations, curated shopping guides, and high-profile television commercials featuring well-known actors Melissa Joan Hart and Adam Devine.
Sharon Otterman, Macy’s chief marketing officer, emphasized the strategic philosophy behind the campaign in a statement detailing the retailer’s holiday roadmap. She noted that at Macy’s, leadership believes the most meaningful holiday moments begin with discovery—whether that means finding the ideal gift, establishing a new family tradition, or simply carving out time to connect with loved ones. According to Otterman, that foundational spirit drives the entire "There’s Magic Inside" campaign. Throughout the holiday season, customers visiting the Herald Square location will encounter that magic firsthand, from a fully reimagined Santaland and iconic holiday windows to Holiday Square, fresh beauty activations, exciting retail brands, and a variety of festive food destinations.
Inside the Reimagined Herald Square Experience
The transformation of the Manhattan flagship is comprehensive, touching nearly every corner of the massive building. Among the most anticipated returning attractions is Santaland, which has undergone a substantial redesign for the current season. Organizers describe the updated attraction as an immersive, multi-sensory journey to the North Pole. In a move to accommodate high demand while streamlining guest flow, Macy’s has made premium passes available for purchase immediately, while free reservation time slots are scheduled to open to the general public beginning on November 20.
Furthermore, Macy’s is placing a strong emphasis on inclusivity during the holiday rush. Through a continued partnership with the Child Mind Institute, the department store has established dedicated sensory-friendly hours. These specialized time slots are crafted specifically to offer a lower-stimulation environment, ensuring that children with sensory sensitivities and their families can enjoy the holiday tradition comfortably.
Beyond Santaland, the sprawling retail floor at Herald Square has integrated a collection of new and recently opened shop-in-shops. The additions are designed to freshen up the merchandise mix and appeal to trend-conscious shoppers looking for apparel, accessories, and cosmetics. Featured brands joining the flagship environment include fashion and accessory mainstays such as Coach, Kendra Scott, Kurt Geiger, Michael Kors, and Tory Burch. On the beauty side, shoppers can now explore offerings from Aesop alongside custom lip color brand Made My Shade by the Beauty Tailor.
The retail experience is also being supported by an expanded selection of dining options meant to keep visitors fueled during long shopping trips. New culinary arrivals inside the flagship include Frankie’s Brooklyn Pizza, Gong Cha, and Sunday Morning, adding diverse food and beverage choices to the historic building.
Adding a whimsical, highly shareable element to the holiday footprint, New York’s famous Museum of Ice Cream is bringing a custom version of its signature Sprinkle Pool directly to Macy’s Holiday Square. The interactive installation offers visitors ice cream-themed merchandise alongside playful, highly Instagrammable photo opportunities designed to capture social media engagement during the peak shopping weeks.
Broader Corporate Strategy and Context
The festive activations at Herald Square come at a critical juncture for Macy’s as a corporation. The department store giant has spent much of the year executing a multi-faceted downsizing and revitalization plan known internally as the "Bold New Chapter" strategy. As part of this broader operational pivot, Macy’s has been systematically reducing its overall physical fleet, announcing plans for additional store closures, while simultaneously investing heavily in modernizing about half of its remaining 408 stores.
These brick-and-mortar investments appear to be finding their footing, supported by recent revenue growth across the company’s portfolio and capital allocation efforts that include reinvesting tariff refunds back into turnaround initiatives. Leadership has also looked to inject fresh creative energy into the enterprise; this past August, the company tapped Maya Dukes to serve as its senior vice president and executive creative director to oversee production and visual branding moving forward.
As foot traffic picks up in Manhattan for the holiday shopping season, Macy’s is betting that the combination of nostalgic traditions like Santaland, modern retail partnerships, and high-visibility marketing campaigns like “There’s Magic Inside” will reinforce the Herald Square flagship’s status as a premier holiday destination.
