Macy's ending sponsorship of Holiday Parade, Downtown

Macy's has pulled out of its longtime sponsorship of the annual Holiday Parade, Downtown, traditionally held the Saturday after Thanksgiving, citing a commitment to other projects.

A letter from Amy Kule, vice president of the Macy's Parade and Entertainment Group in New York, informed parade television partner WPXI of the decision and asserted there was surely “another worthy sponsor waiting in the wings,” TV station officials said.

WPXI plans to seek another sponsor for the parade, scheduled for 9 a.m. Nov. 29.

Either Macy's or its predecessor, Kaufmann's, has been part of the parade for 32 years. Mark Barash, the WPXI executive in charge of the parade, declined to say how much it cost each year or how much Macy's contributed.

Macy's spokeswoman Andrea Schwartz said the company would continue to hold holiday events Downtown, such as the unveiling of its decorated windows on Light Up Night in November and its weekly Breakfasts with Santa.

In addition to its signature Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York, the company produces holiday parades in Portland, Ore., and Seattle but was only a “sponsor” of the Pittsburgh event, meaning it contributed money but did not oversee the coordination and logistics, Schwartz said.

Macy's announced this month that it will lay off about 32 workers in its Midwest regional office above the Downtown store. That office merged with the chain's North region to form a North Central region run from Chicago, as part of a larger reorganization and elimination of 2,500 jobs nationwide.

Matthew Santoni is a Trib Total Media staff writer. Reach him at 412-380-5625 or msantoni@tribweb.com.