The Macy’s building on the Fulton Mall, once the well-known Abraham & Straus department store, has been sold to Al Laboz’s United American Land. This comes after Macy’s announced plans to close 150 of its stores by 2026, according to The Real Deal. The building was never granted landmark status, The New York Times wrote in 2019.

Laboz has long been familiar with the Fulton Mall Macy’s since he is chair of the Fulton Mall Improvement Association. He is also a member of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership and the MetroTech Business Improvement District. He also developed the ground-floor retail portion of the Brooklyn Municipal Building.

“We’re excited to acquire this incredible and storied property and the future possibilities of developing it into world-class retail spaces, as well as location-based entertainment that will transform the Fulton Street Mall,” he said.

The Fulton Mall Macy’s, in addition to the historic 19th-century building at 422 Fulton St., also occupies a 1930s art deco building and a small building that was constructed in the 1970s. 

No closure or sale has been announced for the other Macy’s in Brooklyn, the one on Flatbush Avenue at Kings Plaza. Some commentators have speculated that the Kings Plaza Macy’s — since it is in a spacious mall that also contains other stores — drew customers from the Fulton Street Macy’s from the minute that Kings Plaza opened in 1970. 

But for much of the public, the Fulton Street Macy’s is THE Brooklyn Macy’s, and some news reports refer to it merely as “the Brooklyn Macy’s” with no recognition of the Kings Plaza site.

In the last few years, parts of the Fulton Mall have received a more upscale makeover, with stores such as American Eagle Outfitters, Aeropostale and the renovated Gage & Tollner opening. Still, according to The Real Deal, a Macy’s spokesperson, when asked about the future of the Fulton Mall store, said merely, “Our new strategy is designed to create a more modern Macy’s and improve the customer experience. We intend to close approximately 150 stores.”

The store goes back to the 1860s; it opened at another Fulton Street location, as Abraham & Abraham. In 1893, it became Abraham & Straus, and in 1929, it joined Federated Department Stores along with Filene’s, Lazarus and Bloomingdale’s. For decades, it was one of the best-known stores on Fulton Street, along with Loeser’s and Namm’s. 

In the 1950s, A&S, as it was known, expanded, opening up new stores throughout the metropolitan area. In 1994, Federated acquired Macy’s. Management decreed that since Macy’s was a better-known name than Abraham & Straus, the Fulton Street store would become a Macy’s.

In addition to its retail offerings, A&S and later the Kings Plaza Macy’s were known for their community programs. Often, shoppers at the Fulton Mall visited the store’s well-known ice cream parlor. 

A&S held a yearly catch-and-release fishing contest in Prospect Park for kids, something that was continued by Macy’s until 2011 when it was ended due to a staff shortage. In the 1970s, A&S had a “living mannequin” program by which honor students from the borough’s high schools posed in the windows wearing designer clothes.

In 2014, according to Wikipedia, the influential Women’s Wear Daily reported that Macy’s had stopped a renovation of the store that was then underway because it was considering selling the Downtown Brooklyn complex, possibly to build a new one nearby. 

But, by 2016, the chain decided to keep the store in its current location. In 2017, Tishman Speyer announced that it would develop a 10-story building named The Wheeler on top of the original building. The renovation was completed in 2018 and was covered in the Eagle.

Yelp entries about the Fulton Mall Macy’s averaged 2 ½, slightly below average. Many of the negative entries complained about the staff not being very helpful. One, by “La La J” from Oct. 30, said, “The brilliant management decided to cut off half of the only open dressing room on the ladies 3rd floor. Meanwhile, there’s a line for no reason if they had opened up the other five or six around the corner.”

Still, the ratings were a little higher than the Kings Highway Macy’s, which had an average rating of 2.

In addition to possible retail, Laboz told the New York Post that he is considering “family-friendly entertainment” such as Netflix, Universal and Lego for the site. 

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