Retailer Macy's Inc is preparing to launch a $100 million fall advertising campaign with celebrities such as Martha Stewart and Donald Trump as it tries to boost its dowdy image and sagging sales, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

The new television spots -- one of which will be aired at the Emmy Awards show in September -- are a departure for Macy's, which has traditionally relied on everyday-looking actors to sell its products, the Journal reported on its Web site, citing people familiar with the matter.

The new campaign was partly prompted by a new line of home products that Martha Stewart is launching this fall exclusively for the chain, the Journal said.

The ads will also feature celebrities such as R&B singer Usher, Project Runway's Tim Gunn and designer Tommy Hilfiger, the Journal said.

The ads were created by Macy's and WPP's JWT, which hired film director Barry Levinson to work on them, the Journal said.

Macy's reported a 77 percent drop in second-quarter profit last week on disappointing sales.

The company, formerly called Federated Department Stores, is boosting marketing and promotions in a bid to spur traffic at hundreds of May Department Stores it acquired in 2005 and converted to the Macy's name last year.

Macy's also said during its earnings call that early sales of a Martha Stewart line of home products showed promise, and that it plans more promotions to spur store traffic.

(Reporting by Anupreeta Das in New York and Karen Jacobs in Atlanta, editing by Valerie Lee)

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