Dive Brief:

• Macy's is partnering with on-demand beauty services provider beGlammed to offer at-home grooming and makeup services, including bridal makeup, which customers can book through the retailer’s website.

• The Macy's/beGlammed service will be launched in 22 U.S. cities in which the startup already operates, including Los Angeles, New York City, Miami, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Chicago and Dallas. Prices will range from $25 to $185 for a visit from one of beGlammed’s 1,200 stylists. The partners will promote the effort across multiple channels, including a dedicated beGlammed landing page and exposure on macys.com, dedicated emails with exclusive deals, in-store signage, social media promotions and events.

• BeGlammed was started two years ago by former MAC Cosmetics stylist Maile Pacheco (who worked on celebrities including Mariah Carey, Miley Cyrus, Joe Jonas and others) to connect customers with professional stylists on-demand.

Dive Insight:

At this point, Macy's is trying to take whatever new avenues are within its reach in order to reverse an ongoing slump that recently caused the company to announce the closing of 100 stores.

The retailer, which is still barely hanging on to the title of America's largest apparel merchant (Amazon likely will pass Macy's on that score sometime next year) has tried a number of things to rebound, including improving its jewelry departments, clearance sections and athletic wear offerings. Macy's also has expanded its in-store Starbucks coffee concessions, and is looking to roll out at least one Apple store-within-a-store concept.

Macy's previously acquired high-end beauty and spa retailer Bluemercury for $210 million, but this new relationship with beGlammed isn't about in-store experiences. Instead it involves in-home services, which could allow Macy's to forge new or stronger bonds through beGlammed with its customers, particularly its online customers.

BeGlammed sounds like an interesting operation in its own right, already in almost two dozen markets after just two years, and with iPhone and Android apps and a heavy social media presence to connect with its customers. The celebrity associations that beGlammed brings could also help Macy's deliver a little more of that kind of cachet to its customers. Who doesn't want Miley Cyrus' eyebrows?