May Department Stores, which on June 9 agreed to buy retailer Marshall Field’s from Target Corp., is getting the Marshall Field’s catalog business as part of the package. But Sharon Bateman, a spokesperson for St. Louis-based May, says no plans have been set yet for the catalog. “We’re just beginning to transition with Marshall Field’s,” she says. “We’re reviewing all areas of operations, including the catalog.”
May agreed to pay $3.24 billion in cash for Marshall Field’s. Although neither Target nor May will reveal the size of Marshall Field’s catalog/Internet business, it’s clearly not the focal point of the pending sale. The 62 Marshall Field’s stores give May the larger Midwest presence it has sought, with stores located primarily in the Chicago, Detroit, and Minneapolis areas. In addition, May is getting nine Mervyn’s stores in the Twin Cities.