Bloomingdale is getting ready to open its first-ever Bloomie’s store

July 8, 2021: -The luxury department store chain Bloomingdale’s announced Wednesday that it would use the moniker for a new location that will open in Fairfax, Virginia, on Aug. 26. For decades, Bloomie’s word has been used as a term of endearment by fans of the actual Bloomingdale.

The 22,000-square-foot space will be smaller than a typical Bloomingdale location, which can span upward of 200,000 square feet. The store will be a hub for experiences, focusing on fashion, and feature Colada Shop, a restaurant that serves coffee, Caribbean-inspired small bites, and cocktails into the evening.

Bloomingdale’s Chief Executive Tony Spring described Bloomie’s as a “highly edited” and “convenient” version of the department store of the namesake.

The new Bloomie’s shop will be selling women’s and men’s apparel, footwear, jewelry, handbags, and beauty products. The merchandise on the floor will frequently rotate throughout the week, giving customers something fresh to look at each time they return.

Bloomies will offer alterations, a dropbox for returns, and appointments with stylists.

The description is somewhat akin to Nordstrom’s small-format shop, Nordstrom Local, debuting in Los Angeles in the year 2017. Nordstrom’s version doesn’t include any merchandise for sale. But the strategy was to open a pint-sized space, off-mall, catering to the needs of the shoppers.

Previously, Bloomingdale’s owner Macy’s has hinted that these smaller-format locations were in the works. As part of its turnaround strategy, Macy’s is also in the works of opening additional Macy’s Backstage areas off-mall as well as smaller-format Macy’s shops known as Market by Macy’s. Kind of like Bloomie’s, the latter features a more curated and slimmed-down assortment of inventory.

Macy’s currently operates 33 Bloomingdale’s stores and 21 Bloomingdale’s outlet shops in the United States.

With Bloomie’s, the company also hopes to keep capitalizing on the market share in luxury retail that has been up for grabs after several players in the space either closed stores or liquidated in recent years. That list includes Barneys New York, Neiman Marcus, and Lord & Taylor.

Some more shops of Bloomie are in the works, but locations and timing weren’t disclosed.