In less than a year, the historical department store that has graced State Street for years, will be changing its name. Marshall Field’s isn’t in the West Loop, but everyone living in the city and the suburbs knows where to find the legendary store, especially when the holidays roll around. It’s my first holiday season in the city, and I was excited to learn that ice skating at Millennium Park, carriage rides down Michigan Avenue, and Marshall Field’s story-telling windows were roughly a mile (or a short el ride if it’s frigid outside) from my apartment. But when I learned that Field’s would be changing its name to Macy’s, I didn’t know if the holidays would ever be the same. Will Macy’s keep up the Field’s tradition of telling a story in the windows all around the store?
I felt a little cheated; I finally move to the city, fully ready and able to appreciate all it has to offer in every nook and cranny, and one of the most popular traditions won’t even be here next year.There’s not much any of us can do, though, except for enjoy Field’s final window display. At least something familiar to Field’s will be around after the store names change. Frangos, the Marshall Field’s signature chocolates, have become their own brand name.