Nordstrom

Nordstrom To Open Non-Profit Store In New York City

Nordstrom will be opening a unique store in Manhattan next year. The department store chain has announced that it will open a store that will turn over all its earnings to nonprofits. The Soho store will not be branded as a Nordstrom but will instead be another type of store with a name to be determined later. It won't sell used clothes like a Goodwill or other thrift store. Exactly what it is and what it will sell doesn't seem to be clear yet.

An article in the Seattle Times says that the Seattle-based company will open the store next fall at the base of a new 10-story residential building on West Broadway. The building is home to luxury full-floor residences. At just over 11,000 square feet, the new store will be much smaller than a Nordstrom or Nordstrom's Rack store.

Corporate spokeswoman Pamela Lopez told the Seattle Times that the intention is not to create a "mini-Nordstrom" but to come up with something new that will have its own identity. Lopez also revealed that the project is unique to New York, a one-off concept that won't be expanded to other cities. The chain still hopes to open a full-size Nordstrom in Manhattan and the project is one way to learn more about doing business in Manhattan (the brand also has a Nordstrom's Rack store in Union Square).

Tags: NonProfit, NonProfitOrganizations, nonprofits, nordstrom, Nordstrom Rack, SohoNotes

The Rich Will Rescue Christmas

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel

It looks like luxury retail is getting ready for a comeback. Shoppers in enviable tax brackets are doing a better job of prying their wallets open, at least if you can believe their stock prices. Tiffany, Saks and Nordstrom all showed signs of progress heading into Black Friday, meaning that investors were willing to bet on the wealthy.

Dan Greenhaus, chief economic strategist at Miller Tabak, explained to USA Today, "We're resting our (upbeat outlook) on the upper-income consumer, who seems to be holding up pretty well." This group, he continued, "is where the vast majority of spending in this country is done."

Research firm Penn Schoen Berland weighed in with agreement: "Well-to-do Americans are feeling much less of a crunch." Households with incomes of greater than $70,000 a year, the firm found, planned to amp up their holiday spending by 27 percent this year. Those with incomes below $40,000 are cutting their holiday joy by 14 percent.

While the bargain hunters turn to the discount retailers, which are expected to do well this year, look for the higher-income consumers to spend more at places like Williams-Sonoma and other mid-range to upscale retail establishments.

So, with deeper pockets starting to open this year, it looks like the wealthy will turn last year's holiday bust around. A good holiday season for Saks shows that those with the bucks are starting to open up, and recoveries start at the top.

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Tags: luxury retail, luxury retailers, LuxuryRetail, LuxuryRetailers, nordstrom, Nordstroms, recession, RecessionAntidote, recovery, retail, retail sales, retailers, RetailSales, saks, Saks Fifth Avenue, SaksFifthAvenue, tiffany, TiffanyAndCo, tiffanys

Discount Rules While Luxury Flounders

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

More bad news for Saks Fifth Avenue. As our sister blog Daily Finance reported, Saks has released its second quarter results beating analysts' expectations by posting a loss of $54.5 million, or 39 cents per share on sales of $561.7 million. Same store sales were down 15.5 percent. None of this is too surprising, luxury shopping has been taking a huge hit in this economy. But what is compelling is that Saks saving grace may end up being its discount outlets. An AP story said that the less-expensive Off 5th stores are doing better than Saks' full-price stores. This news comes as Nordstrom, which has also been having a rough time in this market has announced that is expanding its discount chain, Nordstrom Rack. The question I have is with the boom of outlet stores and the success of discount stores like Marshalls and TJ Maxx, who will be left to buy the items at their original prices? The discount market relies on the fact that department stores exist and that some buyers are willing to pay the premium to have their choice of designer goods. If the luxury brand buyers switch to buying the brands only at discounted rates it remains to be seen how the structure of shopping will change. I suppose the good news in this for luxury retailers is that the shopping impulse is alive and well in U.S. consumers, they just aren't willing to spend the big bucks currently.

Tags: discount, nordstrom, outlet stores, OutletStores, saks, shopping

Nordstrom Sees Bright Spot On The Horizon

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Department stores have been put through the wringer lately but Blake Nordstrom, president of the retailer, is "cautiously optimistic about 2009" believing that the worst may be over. On Tuesday at the company's annual shareholder meeting in Seattle, Nordstom said that he his company is committed to improving customer service and plans to open its first store in San Juan, Puerto Rico in either 2013 or 2014.

As part of the meeting the company celebrated two of its top-selling vendors with its annual Partners in Excellence Award, this year the recipients were UGG and Jimmy Choo, proving that shoes still do well in a down market. The company sold 1 million pairs of Ugg shoes last November and December. Nordstrom's first-quarter profit was down 32 percent but that beat Wall Street expectations and the stock has been rising steadily this year.

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Tags: nordstrom

Nordstom Ultimate Gifts Collection

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

We are kicking off a day of gift ideas in honor of Black Friday, the official start of the holiday season. First off, let's check out the latest offering from one of the big department stores. Nordstrom has jumped on the extravagant gift bandwagon with their Ultimate Gift Collection. The four one-of-a kind gift packages include a family portrait session with celebrity photographer Sam Jones which costs $50,000; a custom couch designed by Tory Burch in a silk Ikat print fabric hand-picked by Tory Burch and manufactured by Century Furniture in Hickory, N.C. for $15,000; a dream armoire designed and stocked by Juicy Couture (Two armoires are available at $15,000 each0; and custom artwork by artist Ruben Toledo, a larger-than-life, (12'x 20'), personalized painting. The package includes a pre-consultation at your home, a completed painting and professional installation of the finished work for $200,000.

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Tags: holidays, nordstrom, ultimate gift collection, UltimateGiftCollection

"The Thread," Nordstrom's Fashion Blog

by Lisa Palladino (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel

Is it cannibalistic to recommend another blog? I'm not sure, but here goes ... Nordstrom has a short and sweet weekly fashion blog, The Thread, that highlights what's going in the fashion world. It's easy to read and navigate because there are only 5 or so posts. Sure, it's somewhat self-serving, as you can be sure what the writers are touting is available in Nordstrom stores, but I liked it because it also hit upon outside news, such as Fashion Week. While Nordstrom might not be as high-end as Neiman Marcus or Saks, I like it because it still offers a variety of sizes (petite to plus) and styles that range from affordable to upscale. Plus the shoes! The Thread might be worth a few minutes of your time, just to see what hot fashion trend you may have missed. I checked out the Fall 2008 Boot Guide.

Tags: boot, boots, fashion, fashion blog, FashionBlog, Nordstrom, shoes, thread

Nordstrom "Designer Collections" Handbags

by Lisa Palladino (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Handbags

Nordstrom has a bit of this and that -- uptown to downtown, and great shoes. But did you know that it also has a "Designer Collections" shop on its site? I just discovered its handbag shop. As I write, there are 195 designer handbags offered, in brands that include Burberry, D&G, Kooba, Roberto Cavalli, Versace and a select few others. Fall styles are out -- get shopping! And/or see the gallery * for a few styles I picked at random.

* Note: Gallery pictures open to full size once you click on them.

Gallery: Designer Handbags Available at Nordstrom

Tags: designer, handbag, handbags, Nordstrom, online shopping, OnlineShopping, purse, purses

Nordstrom Moves to Recylable Shopping Bags and Boxes

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Green

Last week I mentioned that eLuxury was getting rid of their paper catalogs now another luxury retailer has taken an environmental step forward. Nordstrom has announced that they will introduce environmentally friendly packaging options for customers throughout 2008. They will offer fully recyclable shopping bags and gift boxes and will also sell reusable shopping tote. Over the next year the company's paper shopping bags will evolve to be 100 percent recyclable. Old boxes and bags that are not recyclable will be phased out and over the coming months new paper bags with recyclable cotton handles will be phased in and for the holidays the company will offer gift boxes made of 100 percent recycled paper stock that is 30 percent post-consumer waste.

The reusable shopping totes will have a cityscape illustration by artist Ruben Toledo. The metallic brushed linen tote will zip into a small rectangle case for easy storage. It will sell for $21.95.

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Tags: bags, nordstrom, recyclable, ruben toledo, shopping bags

Is Masstige Fading?

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Could the high-end handbag and shoe trend be waning? There are some warning signs that the luxury frenzy is abating. A Fortune article brings together a couple of important stats such as the fact that both Nordstrom, the high-end department store, and Coach, purveyors of mid-range handbags, have issued warnings of weaker-than-expected sales. The sector of the luxury market that will most likely be hit won't be the very high end but the "masstige" (prestige items for the masses) market, those retailers who have aimed squarely at the moderately wealthy. This has bread and butter for Coach over the last few years, leading to explosive growth. Now their stock is off 32 percent in the past six months. The article cites the falling estate prices as one of the possible reasons for the slowdown. As people's houses are worth less they feel less rich and so they are less likely to spend heavily. Many retailers are anxiously awaiting the upcoming holiday season to see just how soft the luxury market is.

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Tags: coach, luxury, masstige, nordstrom, shoes

WSJ Rates Luxury Department Stores

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Services

After sending out correspondents to 12 stores of 5 different luxury department store chains in 6 cities across the country, the Wall Street Journal reported its findings yesterday, comparing how the stores stacked up in terms of service, product selection and their "extra touches." Bergdorf Goodman came out on top, winning the "best overall" rating. They had the shortest wait time for staff help, the largest selection of high-end, ready-to-wear designer apparel, excellent restrooms and even a DJ that will download music onto your iPod. Barneys got a nod for their insightful staff and number of new designers. Neiman Marcus was praised for their huge catalogue selection. Nordstrom, though only half its stores carry all their luxury brands, had one of the best shoe collections as well as easy returns. Saks has refreshing water bars and ultra-attentive staff.

Tags: barneys, bergdorf goodman, department stores, luxury department stores, neiman marcus, nordstrom, saks, wall street journal, wsj

Bergdorf Goodman Tops Luxury Retailer List

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Services

The Luxury Institute just released the results of their 2006 luxury brand reputation survey. The top retailer this year was Bergdorf Goodman, which edged out Nieman Marcus for the title. Finishing a close third was Nordstrom. The four main criteria, known as the Luxury Brand Status Index, used in the survey are exclusivity, consistently superior quality, ability to make customers feel special and the associated social status of the people who shop there. Other retailers included in the survey were Barney's, Bloomingdale's, Brooks Brothers, Paul Stuart, and Saks Fifth Avenue. The CEO of the Luxury Institute said that "at the request of clients, this year we added a critical referral metric, which was won overwhelmingly by Nordstrom, indicating that even those who are not customers are willing to refer Nordstrom to people they care about most." This is also a good indication that Nordstrom will be serious competition for the top two retailers in the future.