In a free society as eclectic and ethnically varied as ours,
customers expect and demand a range of choices that meet their
individual needs and fashion preferences. In our role as
retailers, we recognize that it is the consumer who ultimately
determines what products will continue to be viable retail
offerings. Those decisions are made daily at the cash register
by individual consumers and function as a singularly effective
barometer for determining what will and will not be sold by
retailers in a free and open marketplace. Varied and
conflicting viewpoints about what should or should not be sold
underscore our belief that factors unrelated to the workings of
a free economy are inappropriate determinants of retail
offerings. For example, while we respect the views of
individuals who choose not to buy or wear fur, we also respect
the wishes of many others who are our customers and who want to
make such choices for themselves.
Macy’s, Inc. is involved in other crucial issue areas
as well. In recent years, the company has initiated and
completed an extensive, readily achievable upgrading of stores
and facilities to comply with the Americans With Disabilities
Act. The company also has actively participated in facilitating
consumer product recalls, in industry efforts to safeguard
consumer privacy, and in preventing credit fraud and abuses of
personal bankruptcy laws that cost American families millions
of dollars annually.