Believe

I'm sitting here, like millions of Americans, watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. There is something about this event, where no matter how old you get, you still watch. Although I do have to say, of course, there are things I do not enjoy about it, ex. The "pop stars" which are featured on many floats. I much prefer your classic Broadway star or jazz singer, such as Jane Krakowski, who was featured this year (30 Rock star, who got her start on Broadway).

As someone studying communications, my eye is drawn to the immense amount of commercialism in the parade-- From the appearance of Ronald McDonald, to the GMC car leading Santa Claus in to end the parade. Heck, the parade itself is one big commercial for Macy's.

However, no matter how aware I am of the sheer amount of money and sponsorship that is inevitably poured into this parade every year, I can look past it and appreciate this occasion for what it is supposed to be. I had confidence that this tradition was not started by Macy's purely for the sake of great marketing and holiday association of the Macy's name. So, I looked into this matter to see if I was correct.

I assume that the Macy's parade beginnings are not common knowledge. Maybe I'm wrong, but I had no idea how it began. So, I researched.

I was correct -- The parade was not started in an advertising campaign by Macy’s. In fact, it was began by a group of European immigrants in 1924 who worked at Macy’s, and wanted to celebrate an American holiday like they celebrate holidays in Europe. So this group organized a parade from 145^th street to Macy’s on 34^th. The parade included employees, professional entertainers in costumes, a band, and animals from the Central Park Zoo – with the parade ended by none other than Santa Claus.

The parade was a hit, and drew a quarter of a million people and has been a yearly tradition ever since. 1927 was the first year to actually include the balloons, which make the parade so notable today. They were produced by the Goodyear Tire Company.

Macy’s cannot thank pop culture enough for all of the great PR they have been given. The simple correlation that pop culture has made between Christmas and Macy’s has made them a staple of the holiday season. Macy’s stock has increased 3.17% in one day and on November 11^th, they reported to be having a much stronger quarter than they expected, and they plan to have a successful holiday season, despite the economy.

(Of course, I must note the Macy’s reference made in the classic Miracle on 34^th Street. Although, I admit, I much prefer the 1994 version, in which the department store is called “Cole’s” – it is still clearly and homage to Macy’s. )

Ironically, as I was about to begin this paragraph, this commercial came on TV.

As if I haven’t gushed enough about how great I think Macy’s is, I must commend their latest corporate-social responsibility effort. For every letter dropped in the beautiful, big, red mailboxes in Macy’s this holiday season, Macy’s will donate one dollar to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

According to Martine Reardon, executive VP of marketing for Macy’s, “our Believe campaign is once again inspiring America to embrace the hope, joy and charity of the holiday.”

In accordance with this promotion, Macy’s flagship store will feature a window display, tracking the letters from Macy’s stores to their destination with Santa at the North Pole.

No matter how old you are, you can’t outgrow the magic of Christmas. It’s this so called “magic” that makes Christmas so spectacular -- not the gifts or the shopping. It's the spirit, which is embodied by the brand of Macy's at Christmastime. I know it's all about profit, but I think we can all take comfort in the fact that Macy's holiday spirit was never rooted in profit, but in bringing tradition and joy to the masses. Therefore, we can never outgrow the magic of Macy’s, and Macy’s will never outgrow us.

Happy thanksgiving.