Macy’s isn’t eating President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
The retail giant on Wednesday said it will raise prices to offset higher import costs, as the president’s trade war begins to hit American companies—and shoppers—directly.
Macy’s CEO Tony Spring told CNBC, “There is going to be, selectively, items that may be more expensive, and there are items that we might not carry because the pricing doesn’t merit the quality or the perceived value by the consumer.”
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Macy’s joins a long list of other companies, including Walmart, Best Buy, Mattel, Nike and Subaru, who have warned of possible price hikes due to Trump’s tariffs.
Spring emphasized on a conference call that the price hikes won’t be across the board, saying, “We’re being incredibly surgical about the situation with tariffs.” The retail giant estimated that tariffs will reduce its annual gross margin by approximately 20 to 40 basis points, Fox Business reported.
While Trump has rolled back many of his “Liberation Day” tariffs for now, baseline tariffs of 10 percent still apply to most imported goods, and imports from China are taxed at 30 percent or higher. Macy’s imports around 20 percent of its products from China, with approximately 27 percent of private brands sold at its stores also coming from the country, according to the Associated Press.
But a federal trade court on Wednesday blocked most of Trump’s tariffs, ruling that the president does not have the authority to impose global levies and throwing retail giants scrambling to deal with the impact of Trump’s trade war on their business into further disarray.
Earlier this month, Trump lashed out at Walmart CEO Doug McMillon, after McMillon said the world’s largest retailer had no choice but to raise prices because of tariffs, even at their reduced levels.
“Walmart should STOP trying to blame Tariffs as the reason for raising prices throughout the chain,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Walmart made BILLIONS OF DOLLARS last year, far more than expected. Between Walmart and China they should, as is said, ‘EAT THE TARIFFS,’ and not charge valued customers ANYTHING.”
Macy’s, which is valued at around $3.35 billion, also cut its profit outlook Wednesday—despite beating Wall Street’s quarterly performance expectations—blaming tariffs, tougher competition, and a drop in consumer spending. Consumer confidence fell five straight months as Trump’s erratic policies fueled recession fears, before rebounding in May.
The retailer, which currently operates more than 425 stores, is in the midst of a push to revive its struggling business by revamping stores, boosting investment in its successful luxury department store Bloomingdale’s and beauty chain Bluemercury, and closing 150 underperforming locations by 2027. It is planning to shutter 66 stores this year.
