US retailer Macy's to cut more than 10,000 jobs

New York - Macy' s unveiled plans Wednesday to cut as many as 10,100 jobs as the iconic US retailer closes stores and downsizes following another disappointing holiday sales season.

Store closures will eliminate 3,900 sales jobs, while a series of streamlining moves, that include cutting middle managers and restructuring store operations, will eliminate an additional 6,200 positions.

Macy' s intends to close 68 stores by the middle of 2017, part of a previously-announced plan to eliminate 100 stores. It also will "opportunistically" close another 30 stores over the next few years as leases expire.

The retailer said the moves will help save US$550 million (S$787.4 million) annually starting in 2017 from which it can invest US$250 million in e-commerce and other growth efforts, such as the Bluemercury cosmetics line.

Macy' s chief executive Terry Lundgren said "we continue to experience declining traffic in our stores where the majority of our business is still transacted." "Whether it is improving corporate agility, enhancing our customer engagement strategies, or continuing to capitalise on the potential value of our real estate assets, we remain focused on the actions that will ultimately improve our financial results," he said.

The moves come amid predictions of significant cutbacks in brick-and-mortar stores with the rise of e-commerce. Macy' s also announced store closures and jobs cuts in January 2015 following disappointing holiday sales.

Separately, Macy' s said its comparable sales in November and December declined by 2.7 per cent at company-owned stores.

Shares of Macy' s slumped 10.4 per cent to US$32.09 in after-hours trading.