Nordstrom Ramps Up Rack Openings This Year

Nordstrom Inc. (Seattle) plans to open the doors at 18 more Rack bargain outlets during the rest of 2024, on top of the nine it has already opened since the start of the year. The retailer detailed those openings in its first quarter earnings release, for which it reported a first quarter net loss of $39 million and a net sales increase of 5.1 percent versus the same period a year earlier.

“The positive sales growth we saw across the company in the first quarter is very encouraging, and we’re particularly excited about the progress that our Rack banner is making,” said CEO Erik Nordstrom. “While we’re pleased with our topline growth, profitability fell short of our expectations. Looking ahead, our strong sales performance gives us momentum heading into the rest of the year and the confidence to reaffirm our 2024 guidance.”

In the first five months of 2024, the retailer opened these Rack stores:

• Queen Creek, Ariz.
• Elk Grove, Gilroy and Pinola, Calif.
• Jacksonville Beach, Fla.
• Snellville and Kennesaw, Ga.
• Wheaton, Ill.
• Macedonia, Ohio

For the rest of the year, it plans these Racks:

• Davis, Oceanside, San Mateo and San Diego, Calif.
• Fort Myers, Fla.
• Geneva, Ill.
• Noblesville, Ind.
• Apple Valley, Minn.
• Omaha, Neb.
• Manalapan Twp., N.J.
• Bayshore, N.Y.
• Matthews, Mooresville and Raleigh, N.C.
• Mason, Ohio
• Franklin, Tenn.
• Houston and San Antonio, Texas

No new department stores are on the horizon for the brand, and its earnings release contained no mention of the status of a Nordstrom family proposal to take the chain private that was revealed in April.

At the end of its most recent quarter, the retailer had 93 department stores, down one from a year earlier, and 264 Racks, up from 243.