History:
As a sixteen year old immigrant from Sweden in 1887, John C. Nordstrom found himself in New York with five dollars in his pocket and not speaking a word of English. With no where to go, the sixteen year old crossed the United States to end up in California and later Washington to work in mines and logging camps. After years doing this, Nordstrom decided to travel to Alaska and the Klondike in hopes to find gold. Two years later, John found himself in Seattle and $13,000 richer. He was offered a partnership from a man he met in Alaska who owned a shoe store. This man, Carl I. Wallin and Nordstrom opened their first shoe store together in 1901 naming it Wallin and Nordstrom located on Fourth and Pike Street in Seattle. Little did they know, this was just the beginning of a retail empire and extremely successful business.
Today Nordstrom currently operates 260 stores located in 35 different states with 117 full line stores and 143 Nordstrom Rack stores and other types of stores. The headquarters is located in Seattle, where John C. Nordstrom started in the retail business. They have huge expansion plans released with over 45 new locations opening by 2018, and 23 of those being this year, including multiple Canada stores and a store in Puerto Rico. In 2013, Nordstrom employed 62,500 full or part time employees, increasing that to 66,000 by December 2013.
Vision:
Our goals are simple: to serve our customers better, to always be relevant in their lives and to form lifelong relationships. And while serving our customer face-to-face is the foundation and hallmark of how we've historically served them, today customers seek our service in new ways. Speed, connivence, innovation, and personalization have become cornerstones of the customer experience. Guided by these new needs, we continue to invest in the cross-channel experience, combining the accessibility of a pure online experience with the high-touch inclusivity of our stores.
Mission:
In our store or online, wherever new opportunities arise- Nordstrom works relentlessly to give customers the most compelling shopping experience possible. The one constant? John W. Nordstrom's founding philosophy: offer the customer the best possible service, selection, quality and value.