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Macy's rolls out retail's largest beacon installation

Macy's expects to complete the installation by early fall, just in time for the upcoming holiday shopping season.
Written by Natalie Gagliordi, Contributor
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Following a test run during last year’s holiday shopping season at its flagship stores in New York City and San Francisco, Macy’s announced that it will expand the use of Shopkick-powered iBeacons to all of its stores nationwide.

Macy's says the rollout marks the largest beacon deployment in retail to date, with more than 4,000 devices planned to power engagement and marketing efforts throughout the department store chain. 

Shopkick's beacons run on the iBeacon protocol, using Bluetooth Low Energy to communicate with shoppers via mobile devices. With the Macy's implementation, communication includes things like personalized department-level deals, discounts, recommendations and rewards.

Macy's expects to complete the installation by early fall, just in time for the upcoming holiday shopping season. Once the rollout is completed, the department store chain said the shopBeacons will prompt users of the Shopkick to opt-in to receive store notifications. The retailer plans to begin more tailored shopper notifications in early spring 2015.

"We are a multi-faceted retailer with stores, technology, Internet capability and mobile access that come together for our customers," said Macy’s CEO Terry J. Lundgren, in a statement. "They are at the center of all our decisions, and our ongoing research and development will continue to help us understand how to personally engage with them."

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