NEW YORK – Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. said Thursday it will design a line of upscale home merchandise for Federated Department Stores Inc., operator of the Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s chains, set to roll out next year in Macy’s across the country.
The Martha Stewart Collection, which will appear in Macy’s stores starting in the fall of 2007, will include home items such as bed sheets, dishes, cookware, holiday decorations and garden furniture.
Financial terms of the deal were undisclosed.
Federated sees the Stewart line as a lure for new customers as it builds Macy’s into a nationwide brand after last year’s acquisition of May Department Stores expanded its reach. In the Northwest, Macy’s outlets have replaced stores that had been part of The Bon chain.
“Our research shows that Macy’s customers respect Martha Stewart’s creativity and taste, and they turn to her for products that express a traditional and updated casual style, consistent with the life that many of our customers aspire to live,” Janet Grove, the company’s vice chairwoman and chairwoman of Macy’s Merchandising Group, said in a statement.
The deal with Federated is the latest tie-up with a big retailer for Martha Stewart, who has built a media and publishing company on her reputation as an well-heeled entertaining and lifestyle guru. She also served a five-month prison sentence last year for lying about a stock sale.
Martha Stewart already sells a line of home furnishings in discount retailer Kmart, which is now part of Sears Holdings Corp. as a result of Kmart’s acquisition of Sears Roebuck &Co.
The new Macy’s collection will not compete with the Kmart line Martha Stewart Everyday, since it will be more expensive and aimed at a more affluent audience, Stewart said.
“Kmart is mass-market, and Macy’s is the largest department store in the country,” she said.
Martha Stewart signed a contract with Kmart in 1997 to sell the Martha Stewart Everyday line in Kmart stores, a deal that both sides have extended until 2009.
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