Federated Department Stores Inc., owner of the Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s chains, announced this week it would buy St. Louis-based May Department Stores for $10.89 billion in a deal that would create the largest U.S. department store chain.
The combination of Federated and May, which operates Famous Barr, Lord & Taylor, Robinsons-May, Filene’s, Hecht’s and Marshall Fields, will likely mean store closings and job cuts, but Federated gave no specifics.
Of Federated’s total management/professional ranks, 65 percent of its executives are women and 25 percent are racial minorities
“Federated has extended its commitment to diversity beyond our workforce to include the communities we serve and the vendors we support,” the company states on its website.
There are 13 Famous-Barr stores in the St. Louis region. There are also stores in Columbia, Mo., Cape Girardeau, Mo., Carbondale, Ill. and Springfield, Ill.