By Matt Sepic
St. Louis, MO – Shareholders of Federated Department Stores have approved an $11 billion deal Wednesday to take over St. Louis-based May Company.
May's shareholders also OK'd the acquisition at the company's annual meeting in New York.
May operates Famous Barr, Lord & Taylor and several other major chains.
Julie Niemann is a business analyst with RT Jones Capital Management.
She says the sale is good for shoppers and Wall Street, but it's a big loss for the St. Louis area.
"As a retail corporate headquarters, there was a lot of traffic coming into St. Louis-buyers and people managing stores. That traffic is about to come to a screeching halt," Niemann said.
The sale is expected to close in time for the holiday shopping season. But it needs federal approval first.
Federated says no layoffs will happen until March.