The largest store in the world for over 100 years

Описание: Macy’s Herald Square is more than a department store; it is a sprawling limestone and granite monument to American consumerism that has anchored 34th Street since 1902. Occupying an entire Manhattan city block, the flagship covers 2.2 million square feet, with roughly 1.25 million square feet dedicated to retail space across 11 massive levels. For over 85 years, from 1924 until 2009, it officially held the title of the "World's Largest Store"—a distinction so central to its identity that the phrase remains etched into the building’s very masonry. Even today, though surpassed in pure scale by the Shinsegae Centum City in South Korea, it remains the largest department store in the United States and a global icon of retail history.
The architecture of the building is a fascinating blend of eras, reflecting the store's gradual expansion. The original Broadway side, designed by DeLemos & Cordes, is a masterclass in Beaux-Arts style, featuring grand Palladian arches and ornate sculptures. As the store grew westward toward Seventh Avenue through the 1920s and 30s, the design shifted toward a sleeker, more modern Art Deco aesthetic. This physical evolution tells the story of Macy's "growing pains," most famously seen at the corner of 34th and Broadway. There, a small five-story building—the "Million Dollar Corner"—sits tucked into the store’s footprint because a rival developer bought the plot to prevent Macy’s from completing the block. Macy's simply built around it, eventually wrapping the holdout in a massive red shopping bag advertisement that has become an iconic NYC landmark.
Inside, the store is a labyrinthine "city within a city," where history and high fashion coexist. One of its most cherished features is the collection of original wooden escalators, some of which have been in continuous operation since the 1920s. These rare, clacking marvels—the first of their kind in the world—provide a tactile connection to the past as shoppers ascend toward modern luxury. The store’s layout is a vertical journey through every conceivable category: the ground floor is a shimmering sea of fragrances and fine jewelry, the second floor houses the world’s largest women's shoe department (covering nearly 63,000 square feet alone), and the upper floors transition into bridal salons, home goods, and even full-scale furniture galleries.
Beyond its merchandise, Macy's Herald Square serves as the cultural stage for New York’s most beloved traditions. It is the official finish line for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, where Santa Claus famously climbs through a window to mark the start of the holiday season. Throughout the year, the store transforms for seasonal events like the Macy’s Flower Show, which fills the main floor with millions of live blooms, and the legendary Santaland, a 13,000-square-foot immersive Christmas village on the eighth floor. These events ensure the building remains a community hub rather than just a commercial space, drawing over 20 million visitors annually.
In 2025 and 2026, the flagship continues to evolve through a multi-year, multi-hundred-million-dollar renovation designed to bridge its century-old heritage with the digital age. Recent upgrades have reopened long-hidden windows to let in natural light and added interactive "wayfinding" kiosks to help tourists navigate the massive floor plans. Despite the rise of e-commerce, the store remains a bustling powerhouse of retail theater. Walking through its brass-trimmed doors, you aren't just entering a shop; you are stepping into a National Historic Landmark that defined the modern shopping experience for the entire world.