Is Macy’s sale imminent? Canadian company reportedly approaches company

A department store operator based out of Canada has approached Macy's Inc. about a takeover, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.

Hudson’s Bay Co., which owns Saks Fifth Avenue stores, are in early talks with the U.S. retailer. Shares of Macy’s were up 7.3 percent to $32.96 on Friday.

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Based in Toronto, Hudson’s Bay owns brands like Gilt, Home Outfitters and Lord & Taylor. The company’s brands have also struggled significantly in brick-and-mortar stores, according to a statement from Jerry Storch, chief executive officer of HBC. Storch said holiday sales were led by strong digital sales growth of 21.7 percent at department store banners.

“However, the sales improvement that we experienced was not strong enough to achieve the results we had expected,” he said. “Also, while we were pleased with our performance at Hudson’s Bay in Canada, the retail environment has remained challenging in the U.S. and Europe and the significant promotional activity during the holiday period had a negative impact on our margins.”

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In August, this newspaper reported that Macy's planned to close about 100 stores in 2017 — about 14 percent of its store base. Macy's has locations at the Dayton Mall, Mall at Fairfield Commons and Tri-County Mall.

Macy’s has identified 68 locations that will close in early 2017. Macy’s will shut down locations in Columbus, Sandusky and Steubenville, and more than 193 employees will be impacted in Ohio.

The discussions come after after a series of poor fiscal quarters for Macy’s.

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