DIS!1/2

STUDENT 1

M5D1 Marshall Field’s Becomes Macy’s: Understanding Retail Brand

Analyze customer motivation and behavior in response to the rebranding of Marshall Field’s.

After reading this case study I find that Macy’s opted to focus on Stage 3 of the Five Stage of Rebranding, bargaining. Cutting corners is probably the worst way to sabotage yourself. (Cases, 2017) Instead of coming out with a strong brand of who they are, they tried to be Macy’s but keep Marshall Field’s around with the big sign out front and the Christmas Tree. Macy’s kept offering sales and promotions that weren’t part of their brand to try and entice customers to like them. Instead of building trust, they created distrust by all these items that customers considered underhanded and cheap. Change is never easy for some people and some customers will always have an emotional attachment to things and places, such as Marshall Field’s. Macy’s needed to stay strong to their brand and give customers the ability to learn and trust the brand. Instead, they kept Marshall Field’s brand around longer than they should have. All it did was remind the customers of what they were losing and not what they were gaining.

Which rebranding strategies would be most effective for any company to use to avoid the same response that Macy’s received during their transition?

Macy’s would have had a more effective transition if they focused more on brand equity. Brand equity is a set of assets linked to the brand’s name and symbol that adds to the value provided or to a firm or that firm’s customers. (Marshall, 2019, p 250) Brand equity is a long road of commitment and takes time to build brand equity. Marshall Field’s had a long history in Chicago so establishing this brand equity was going to take time and patience, Macy’s focused more on what the customers were losing and not what the customer’s were gaining. They needed to create awareness of the great value of Macy’s and the quality that they provide. The slow transition of Macy’s from Marshall Field’s created brand distrust and constantly reminded them of what they were losing including the emotional attachment to Marshall Field’s that many seem to have.  It also created confusion to what this store was going to become. Macy’s needed to own their brand.

 

 

Casas, R. (2017, February 28). The five stages of rebranding grief. Forbes.com. [web log comment]. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2017/02/28/the-five-stages-of-rebranding-grief/#6027941e73ce

 (Links to an external site.)

Marshall, G.W. & Johnston, M.W. (2019). Marketing management (3rd ed.). McGraw Hill

STUDENT 2

A key element to branding or rebranding is to craft a message that speaks honestly to the target audience and simultaneously stays true to the values and direction the company envisions for future growth. (Simpson, 2017).Customers for the most part reacted in a negative fashion to the rebranding of Marshall Field’s to Macy’s. Before the re-opening event, a blog called fieldsfanschicago was created for customers to voice their opinions on the rebranding. Some were worried of changes to come, some worried that the Marshall Field’s of their youth would disappear. There were protests at the store opening, while the few that were for the rebranding felt that those so vehemently opposed should “get a life.” (Lavin, 2009 p. 998). What Marshall Field’s had in Chicago was a very high brand equity. Brand awareness was definitely there, as all native Chicagoans know about Marshall Field’s. There was very strong brand loyalty to the store, which is why there was so much protest. The store also had a high perceived quality because some shoppers lamented that Macy’s is not as classy a brand as Marshall Field’s. Also, the emotional connection many had to the store is evidence of brand association. One rebranding strategy would be to monitor consumer blogs and social media. “Many marketers monitor these postings to discover what consumers like or dislike about their products/services, to identify new product ideas, and to assess their competitive positions.” (Lavin, 2009 p. 996). I think the shoppers were so resistant because Macy’s was trying to keep so much of the original Marshall Field’s but was still calling themselves Macy’s. They could have, instead of keeping so much of what Marshall Field’s was about, redesigned the logos and create their own sales promotions so that they would be unique and not trying to essentially copy off the store they were trying to rebrand. 

References

Lavin, M. (2009). Marshall Field’s becomes Macys: understanding retail brand. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 37(11), 993–1007. doi: 10.1108/09590550910999398

Simpson, J. (2017, August 24). Council Post: The Art of Rebranding: How to Be Smart and Strategic. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2017/02/23/the-art-of-rebranding-how-to-besmart-and-strategic/#1b21fd085eee