Macy's May Settle Suit, Lose Martha Stewart Living Brand to Penney: Retail

When J.C. Penney Co. (JCP) announced in December that it had cut a deal to carry Martha Stewart-branded home goods in its stores, it didn't take Macy's Inc. long to say: Wait a minute, Martha.

More than five years ago, Macy's signed its own exclusive contract to sell bedding, towels, dinnerware, cookware and the like from Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. Under the terms, Martha Stewart Living isn't allowed to sell such wares at a Macy's competitor, including J.C. Penney, Macy's says.

On Jan. 23, Macy's, the second-largest U.S. department store chain, sued Martha Stewart Living in New York State Supreme Court, seeking to stop the deal and collect damages. Martha Stewart Living, which has until Feb. 13 to respond to the lawsuit, will argue that the deal doesn't violate the contract because it will operate its own stores inside J.C. Penney, a person familiar with its strategy said.

Retailers increasingly will knock heads as they compete to lock up celebrity designers in a battle for market share, according to Craig Johnson, president of consulting firm Customer Growth Partners.

“The days of everyone offering the same-old, same-old thing are over and there is a limited number of exclusive vendors,” said Johnson, who is based in New Canaan, Connecticut. “Retailers are trying to ensure they have different merchandise than the anchor they're competing with 50 yards down the mall or on Amazon.”
Incremental Gains

Darcie Brossart, a spokeswoman for J.C. Penney, said the company had no comment. Jim Sluzewski, a spokesman for Macy's, said the company is not commenting beyond the lawsuit.

Martha Stewart, chief editorial, media and content officer of Martha Stewart Living, declined to comment on the suit.

“We love Macy's,” Stewart, 70, said yesterday at a Staples Inc. store in New York, where she was unveiling a home organizing line of products. “They've been great partners.”

While department stores have been making incremental gains, their share of the U.S. retail market in 2011 was less than half the 7 percent they commanded 20 years ago, Johnson said.

Macy's, which is based in Cincinnati, has outperformed J.C. Penney, with a 5.4 percent gain in sales at stores open at least a year in the 11 months ended Dec. 31 compared with J.C. Penney's 0.7 percent increase. Last year Macy's shares advanced 27 percent; J.C. Penney rose 8.8 percent. Martha Stewart Living fell less than 1 percent in 2011.

Martha Stewart Living approached Macy's (M) about a deal in 2005, not the other way around, according to the complaint. The previous year, Stewart was sentenced to five months in prison after being convicted of obstructing justice in an insider trading case. Tying up with a convicted felon was risky for Macy's because Stewart's brand was “under pressure by very public proceedings and their aftermath,” the complaint says.
Lucrative Merchandise

Still, Martha Stewart merchandise was “lucrative” and generated “billions of dollars of sales,” according to the complaint. The Martha Stewart Collection is one of Macy's biggest home goods brands. Household merchandise accounted for 15 percent of the chain's 2010 sales of $25 billion.

“From Macy's point of view, they obviously are upset,” Johnson said. “They threw Martha a nice little lifeline. Macy's had invested a lot of money in it, promoting the brand.”

Macy's had no idea Martha Stewart Living was talking to J.C. Penney and found out about the deal one day before it was announced on Dec. 7, according to the lawsuit.

Under the new partnership, J.C. Penney is buying a 17 percent stake in Martha Stewart Living for $38.5 million and opening home products mini-stores in hundreds of its locations starting next February. According to the companies,Find the latest styles and buy christian louboutin. the partnership will generate more than $200 million in revenue over 10 years for Martha Stewart Living, which is trying to boost growth after three years of falling revenue.
Needed Money

“Martha Stewart needed the money,” said Margaret Gilliam, founder of an eponymous retail consulting firm in New York. “Penney offered to buy a chunk of stock, and infuse a bunch of money and gave a great opportunity to grow.”

For J.C. Penney Chief Executive Officer Ron Johnson, who previously ran Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) retail operations, the deal is part of a strategy to revive sales at the Plano, Texas-based department-store chain, which in November posted its first quarterly loss in two years.

Representatives from Macy's and Martha Stewart Living met Dec. 15 to discuss the J.C. Penney deal, according to the complaint. Macy's said the Martha Stewart Living executives didn't address the most “critical question” Macy's had posed: Why it believed it could enter a deal with J.C. Penney.

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The 2012 NBA All-Star uniforms were designed by adidas and inspired by the 20th anniversary of the memorable 1992 NBA All-Star game which was also held in Orlando. Inspired by the Sunshine State and the fun atmosphere of NBA All-Star weekend, adidas NBA All-Star basketball shoes feature bright orange coloring to pay homage to Orlando's Orange County and the state's famous oranges.

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