Reality show takes inventory at NYC's Macy's

[Brian Damage]

NEW YORK, September 28 (Reuters Life!) - Interviewing elves. Celebrities launching perfumes. Organizing New York's massive Thanksgiving Day parade.

A new television reality show takes a behind-the-scenes look at the United States' largest department store, the nine-story Macy's, in New York's Herald Square -- but don't expect too much reality, such as the dirt from the customer complaints unit or staff moaning about their bosses.

The show follows employees of the store as they cope with customers, stressed photographers trying to meet catalog deadlines, and interview a bunch of people whose ambition in life is to be an elf in the store's elaborate Santaland.

"This is the first time there has been an ongoing series based in a store like this," said Kim Martin, general manager of U.S. women's entertainment channel WE tv that is screening the eight-show series "Unwrapping Macy's" from September 30.



"Women love to shop so to peek behind the scenes is interesting for us and really entertaining."

For Macy's parent company, Federated Department Stores Inc., the show comes at a good time with the premiere coming as the retailer expands into several new markets.

Federated bought May Department Stores last year and has just converted more than 400 of the former May stores to the Macy's nameplate.

Martin said there were amusing moments in the series, with her favorite being the interviews of potential elves. One female applicant was given the job on the condition that she removed all her facial piercings.

She said there were also stressful and chaotic times such as when the team of window dressers raced against the clock to put in the new window displays between midnight and sunrise and with organizing the store's annual flagship event, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.

"It's a real life story following different characters every week," she said, adding that hip-hop impresario and fashion designer Sean "Diddy" Combs also appears to launches his new fragrance.

But some reviewers have criticized the show for further blurring the line between advertising and entertainment with its sanitized view of the store ticking along like clockwork.

"After all, the best part of watching reality shows is snickering about the bad behavior of the participants," said one New York reviewer.


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