"There aren't a lot of regional malls being built in this country," said Karen Hoguet, Macy's chief financial officer during the retailer's first-quarter conference call. "The opportunities are in these lifestyle formats which tend to support a smaller door."

Two 120,000-sf, single-level stores are going in Macerich Co. developments, Estrella Falls, in Goodyear and SanTan Village, in Gilbert. A two-level, 150,000-sf store is going into CityNorth, in the Northeast Valley area, which is being built by the Related Companies and Thomas J. Klutznick Co.

Macy's first-quarter same-store sales were down 2.6% year over year. Total sales dropped 2.9%, to just over $5.7 billion, and the company posted a $59-million net loss.