Noam Galai/Getty Images
- Macy's is in a legal battle with its landlord to prevent Amazon from advertising on its iconic billboard.
- The retail giant said in court filings that Amazon ads on the billboard would cause harm to its business.
- After more than half a century of ownership, Macy's original lease on the billboard expired in August.
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
Macy's won't surrender the billboard atop its iconic Manhattan store to Amazon – at least not without a fight.
The department store chain filed a lawsuit last week against its landlord, the Kaufman Organization, in order to halt a potential deal with Amazon to advertise on the billboard above its flagship Herald Square store, a Macy's spokesperson told Insider on Wednesday.
"The damages to Macy's customer goodwill, image, reputation and brand should a prominent online retailer (especially Amazon) advertise on the billboard are impossible to calculate," the lawsuit alleges.
Macy's has advertised on the 2,200 square-foot billboard for over half a century, but it chose not to renew its lease after it expired in August. Macy's still reserves some rights over who is allowed to advertise on its billboard, the lawsuit says, stipulating that the ad space cannot be leased by any of Macy's retail competitors. By the lease's expiration date, Amazon was already in talks with Kaufman to advertise on the billboard, according to CNBC.
"Since the early 1960s Macy's has placed a billboard sign on the building adjacent to our flagship store at the corner of Broadway and 34th Street," a Macy's spokesperson told Insider.
"Macy's continues to have rights relating to advertisements at that location," the spokesperson added. "We expect to realize the benefits of these rights and have asked the court to protect them. As the matter is in litigation, the company will not have any further comment."
The Kaufman Organization has not yet responded to Insider's request for comment on the ongoing legal dispute.
Amazon declined to comment.
Macy's announced it was closing 45 stores nationwide in 2021 as part of an ongoing downsizing effort to cut one-fifth of stores by 2023. It also was one of several retail chains whose overall sales were down in 2020 due to store shutdowns and reduced customer spending from COVID-19.
Macy's continues to recover from pandemic era lows, citing a rebound as early as June 2020. It announced a partnership with the now-revived Toys 'R' Us in August, and is now looking to staff 76,000 employees in its stores, call centers, distribution, and fulfillment centers ahead of what is expected to be a rough holiday season.