Abercrombie Kids turns to Macy’s for back-to-school sales

Dive Brief:

In another sign that brands once again appreciate wholesale — and department stores — Macy’s is now selling an assortment from Abercrombie Kids as part of its back-to-school merchandising.

The collection of jeans, T-shirts, dresses, skirts, sweaters, outerwear and accessories, in sizes 5 to 18, is available in stores and online, according to a Monday press release.

Also for back to school and dorm life, the department store is touting items from Nike, Adidas, Levi’s, Juniors, Arch Studio, Charter Club, Sun and Stone and Mode of One.

Dive Insight:

This tie-up of Macy’s with Abercrombie Kids is a smart move for both retailers, according to Liza Amlani, co-author of “The Whole Sale — Profitable Wholesale Strategies for Brands.”

The move aligns with Abercrombie & Fitch Co.’s effort to expand distribution of its children’s brand, announced last year, a company spokesperson said by email. That includes a deal to expand internationally. 

It also benefits both when it comes to the disruption caused by tariffs, Amlani said.

“Abercrombie & Fitch is working with their suppliers to optimize their supply chain and product costs in response to the tariff chaos,” Amlani said by phone. “Macy’s will work with the brand to get a landed wholesale cost they can work with and everyone wins.”

Macy’s also gains from the brand’s strong track record of merchandising localized assortments.

“Abercrombie is already stocking its stores with back-to-school product and has already done the work in terms of building the right assortment for their different regions,” Amlani said. “Macy’s can tap into these insights and assort their product mix according to A&F’s insights.”

Specialty retail sliding into department stores isn’t new — Gap apparel can be found in department stores abroad and Macy’s in the U.S., she noted.

But department stores have regained attention from legacy brands like Abercrombie and Nike as well as newer entrants that started out as online pure-plays, according to Amlani.

“What I am seeing is the growth in wholesale strategies for brands that are looking to grow and scale with new markets,” she said.