Macy's CEO Lundgren says online shopping helps drive in-store sales

Macy's (M) CEO Terry Lundgren says every dollar of online sales influences almost $6 of sales inside the retailer's stores. According to Lundgren, many shoppers first see an item online and want to look at it in person before making a purchase. For example, a customer may see a piece of clothing online but ends up visiting a store to check the fit.

The mutually beneficial relationship between online and real world shopping works both ways. Some customers see items in the store and choose to buy them online to take advantage of the shipping options. Whatever the motive, online sales are growing fast. "We're going to do close to a billion dollars in online sales this year and it's growing at 16 percent year-to-date," Lundgren said in an interview with DailyFinance at the company's Herald Square store in New York City on Black Friday.