NEW YORK: Macy’s Inc. is suing rival retailer J.C. Penney Co., claiming Penney’s bid to sell products by Martha Stewart Living resulted in the breach of an exclusive contract held by Macy’s and could cost it potentially billions in sales.
Macy’s filed the lawsuit Thursday in the Supreme Court of the State of New York.
In the complaint, Macy’s claims that J.C. Penney entered into an unlawful contract with Martha Stewart Living to sell some of its home products at its stores starting next February.
Macy’s argues that the pact between Penney and Martha Stewart represents a breach of contract because Macy’s already has a deal in place with options to exclusively sell Martha Stewart goods through 2018.
The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages and an order blocking the Penney-Martha Stewart deal.