“Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade” (8:30 a.m. Thursday, WPXI) has always been an inherent promotional opportunity for its namesake department store, an effort to jump-start the holiday shopping season.

The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade will return on Thursday for its 99th year, featuring beloved floats, balloons and live performances along the streets of Manhattan and on televisions nationwide.

NBC News’ Steven Romo reports on what it’s like to see the balloons inflated in-person and what the new additions to this year’s line-up are.