CFO Karen Hoquet told analysts Thursday that the company is negotiating with potential buyers of its San Francisco men's store, and has also been considering offers for its flagship Herald Square location in New York City and its stores in downtown Minneapolis and on State Street in Chicago, the AP said. The company, with executive offices in Cincinnati and NY, logged $27 billion in revenue past year. The plan includes bringing in more brand shops within the stores, improving online search and ordering, and hosting in-store events to drive traffic.

The chief executive officer in a statement said in a fast-changing world, with dynamism in place, a business empire like Macy should also move with the trend, so as to meet the changing world.

The news came Thursday after its earnings release in which it reported sales were down 2% on a comparable-sales basis for the second quarter, year-over-year.

Macy's now has 728 stores and it already fired 4,800 people in January when it revealed it would shut down 40 stores. But since this past May, it announced it has to accelerate its efforts to get shoppers excited.

Macy's was founded in 1858 when it opened four small department stores in MA.

"Nearly all of the stores to be closed are cash flow positive today, but their volume and profitability in most cases have been declining steadily in recent years", Macy's President Jeff Gennette said in a statement.

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The iconic retailer didn't give actual information on the stores and location that will be closed down, but he was sure that 10%of the Macy's stores would be closed by early next year.

Most of the closures will occur early next year and involve an unspecified number of job cuts, Macy's said.

Macy's said shutting the stores would enable it to bolster its online presence and "elevate our total customer experience across all methods of shopping".

Macy's shares have dropped roughly 3 percent since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index has risen slightly more than 6 percent.

The company said it will first communicate its store closing decisions directly with the employees of those respective stores before a public announcement is made.