Nordstrom 2005 Annual Report Download - page 5

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expansion opportunities
One big story, in terms of expansion, is our entry into the Boston market. Other than Manhattan, Boston is the last major U.S.
metropolitan market where we do not have a presence. Starting with Natick Mall, we will open four stores in the Boston area between
2007 and 2010.
Another great opportunity, due to the changing retail landscape around us, is the availability of desirable real estate. We anticipate
more clarity on specific sites and markets available to us by year’s end. Our primary expansion focus remains on Full-Line stores,
be they in new or existing markets. In 2005, we opened four new Full-Line stores: Phipps Plaza in Atlanta, Georgia; The Shops at La
Cantera in San Antonio, Texas; Irvine Spectrum Center in Irvine, California; and NorthPark Center in Dallas, Texas. In March of 2006,
we opened a 144,000-square-foot store at The Gardens Mall in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Also this fall, we’ll be opening a new
200,000-square-foot store at Westfield Shoppingtown Topanga in Canoga Park, California (a relocation of our 154,000-square-foot
Topanga store that opened in 1984), and a Nordstrom Rack at Grand Plaza in San Marcos, California.
We believe one of our greatest competitive advantages is our ongoing commitment to allocating appropriate spending for store
remodels. This year we are designating approximately 30% of our capital spending to remodeling existing stores. Our ultimate
objective is to make the Nordstrom experience the best it can be for all our customers.
continuous improvement
As a fashion specialty store, we’ve always believed in trying new things and taking calculated risks in order to be competitive.
Here are a few recent changes we believe will enhance the Nordstrom experience.
• Last August, Nordstrom purchased a majority interest in Jeffrey, a luxury specialty retailer with designer boutiques in New York City
and Atlanta, and named its founder, President and CEO, Jeffrey Kalinsky, Director of Designer Merchandising at Nordstrom. We’re
utilizing Jeffrey’s expertise and creativity in the designer business to further our current designer strategies and complement the
incredible job our merchant team has been doing.
• In select stores we’re testing new shop concepts. Examples include trend accessories, featuring unique jewelry and handbags,
and designer “shop-in-shops,” housing notable designer collections.
• We’re finding new ways to give our customers what they want. One example is our customized men’s shirt program, which allows a
customer to sit down with a salesperson, in front of a computer, and essentially build his own shirt.
• In February, we launched our designer Web site on nordstrom.com. The site features photography, plus illustration and animation by
Ruben Toledo which, together, showcase a boulevard of 10 designer shops that mirror the look and feel of each designer’s collection.
• Our $350 million investment in technology over the last several years continues to reap dividends. In the last five years, we’ve gone
from catching up to industry parity to a point where we’re starting to strategically get ahead. We’re now leveraging our technical
foundation with new software applications that offer substantial potential at incremental costs.