Page 39 - Entrepreneur-November 2018

Travis Montaque Baiju Bhatt
Founder and CEO/ Emogi Cofounder and Co-CEO/
Bold move/ Branding Robinhood
consumers’ conversations Bold move/ Embracing crypto’s
ups and downs
ravis Montaque wanted to
T make messaging more mean- ithin four days of announc-
ingful. Text a friend that you want W ing its cryptocurrency-
coffee, and his smart emoji app trading feature in February,
P H O T O G R A P H C O U R T E S Y O F B A C K S TA G E C A P I TA L ( H A M I LT O N ) ; P H O T O G R A P H C O U R T E S Y O F E M O G I ( M O N TA Q U E ) ; P H O T O G R A P H B Y B O N N I E R A E M I L L S ( BH AT T ) ;
will recommend sending them a Robinhood—the zero-fee trading
coffee-cup sticker. In 2017, he app—had signed up more than one

pushed the limits and welcomed million users for its waitlist. They’d
brands into the conversation. Now trade crypto using a neon inter- Jeff Gennette
that recommended coffee-cup face, a departure from the design CEO/ Macy’s
emoji would be branded with Robinhood uses for stocks. “It was Bold move/ Saving hundreds of stores by focusing on 50
P H O T O G R A P H C O U R T E S Y O F FA I R M O N T P R I VAT E S C H O O L S (J A C K S O N ) ; P H O T O G R A P H B Y G E T T Y I M A G E S / S H AW N E H L E R S / S T R I N G E R ( G E N N E T T E )
McDonald’s McCafé moniker. a branding risk,” says Baiju Bhatt,
“There was a question of whether co-CEO. But it was more than that: hen Jeff Gennette seized the reins at Macy’s in 2017, the
consumers would be receptive,” With five million customers, a valu- company was in a deep funk. It wasn’t just that brick-and-
Montaque admits. But users actu- ation of $5.6 billion, and consumer mortar was yielding to e-commerce—even the newly pro-
ally selected branded stickers at a skepticism toward cryptocurrency, moted CEO recognized that the once-famed department
higher rate than non-branded. The launching into the ever-volatile stores, crammed with dull and discounted stock, were
startup’s client roster has since crypto world could have slowed drowning in a “sea of sameness.”
grown to include Tide, Ikea, and Robinhood’s momentum. Instead, And yet today, 20 months later, Macy’s is surpassing
Bose, and in May, the company the company is working toward an expectations. While second-quarter sales were flat at
raised a $12.6 million Series A. IPO in the coming years. $5.6 billion compared with the year-earlier period, net
W income was $164 million, up from $108 million in the
second quarter of 2017.
How? This has been achieved partly through Gennette’s “Growth
50” strategy—improving the ambience, service, and products inside
Macy’s best 50 stores (out of 670), while shuttering underperforming
ones. It was a move fraught with risks, as a company essentially
played favorites within its own organization, surely disappointing or
spooking stores outside the favorite 50.
At the same time, Gennette embarked upon other major changes.
He invested heavily in mobile and e-commerce. And just as signifi-
cantly, Gennette modernized Macy’s culture, bringing in scrappier
entrepreneurs. This year the company took a stake in Silicon Valley
startup b8ta, which now showcases trendy gadgets at The Market
Arlan Hamilton David Jackson
@ Macy’s, a new pop-up concept. It also acquired cult New York
Founder and managing President/ Fairmont concept shop Story, naming its founder, Rachel Shechtman, brand
partner/ Backstage Capital Private Schools experience officer for the department store; her brief is to woo edg-
Bold move/ Not waiting for the Bold move/ Refunding ier brands and create more contemporary in-store experiences.
tech industry to change students’ tuition if schools Macy’s is also rolling out the stand-alone beauty chain
don't deliver Bluemercury, which it bought in 2015 and is gradually bringing
ess than 1 percent of
inside department stores. In doing so, Macy’s gets to capitalize on
L venture-backed founders avid Jackson knows Fairmont
one of retail’s most dynamic sectors, while also connecting with
are black, and female founders D Private Schools provide
younger, social-media-savvy customers who likely wouldn’t dare
received just 2 percent of venture a top-notch education. The
stop at a stodgy old beauty counter.
capital in 2017. That’s why, in Southern California network of pri-
“It is encouraging to see the continued strengthening of our
May, Arlan Hamilton announced vate P-12 schools has sent gradu-
brick-and-mortar business, where we saw trend improvements
via Twitter—with a GIF from ates to top-100 colleges for more
across the portfolio, led by our Growth 50 stores,” Gennette said on
Beyoncé’s “Formation”—that her than 10 years. “So I made that
a recent earnings call. Nevertheless, he acknowledges that Macy’s
firm, Backstage Capital, was rais- part of our guarantee,” Jackson
will not succeed long-term without “robust e-commerce” and the
ing a $36 million “It’s About Damn says. In 2017, he launched the
“great mobile experience” he is also committed to developing. But
Time” fund to invest in companies “College Promise”: If students
for now, the CEO is upbeat. “Our strategic initiatives are gaining
founded by black women. She's who’ve graduated from Fairmont’s
traction,” he notes. “We have momentum.”
since created Backstage Studio so high school don’t get into a top-
she and her team can launch prod- 200 college or university, they
ucts of their own, further challeng- get half their high school tuition
ing tech's status quo. “A no is just back as a scholarship for college.
one step closer to the next yes,” “People thought I was crazy,” he Reporting by/ Blaire Briody, Menna Farouk, Boyd Farrow,
Hamilton said earlier this year. “One says. “But we’re already deliver- Jason Feifer, Hayden Field, J.J. McCorvey, Kate Rockwood,
step closer to what I want.” ing. What are you worried about?” Stephanie Schomer, Madison Semarjian, and Amy Wilkinson
November 2018 / ENTREPRENEUR.COM / 65