Nordstrom is an American luxury department store chain. Founded back in 1901 by John W. Nordstrom and Carl F. Wallin, it originated as a shoe store and evolved into a full-line retailer with departments for clothing, footwear, handbags, jewelry, accessories, cosmetics, and fragrances.
Some stores feature home furnishings and wedding departments, and several also have in-house cafes, restaurants, and espresso bars.
Nowadays, no wonder Nordstrom has so many "WTF" items—as of 2021, it operates 100 stores in 32 U.S. states, and 3 Canadian provinces since entering the market in 2014. One location in Puerto Rico was in operation from 2015 through 2020.
The corporate headquarters and flagship store are located in the former Frederick & Nelson building in Seattle, Washington; a second flagship store is located near Columbus Circle in New York City. Its subsidiaries include the off-price department store chain Nordstrom Rack and the members-only online store HauteLook.
Nordstrom has long been an early adopter of e-commerce, especially among its department store peers. That ethos will serve the upscale retailer well as it weathers the biggest storm in its history, which sent an even bigger chunk of its business online.
The company said at its virtual investor day that sales in Q4 2020, including the key holiday season, fell by a low 20s percentage, capping a devastating year in which the pandemic temporarily shut all of its stores and its clientele eschewed the fashion wares for which Nordstrom is known.
But another big result of the COVID-19 upheaval is that the percentage of sales Nordstrom gets online has risen to about 50% and the company expects that to stick. Which may be the reason why people have been finding so many ridiculous items lately!
