Nordstrom – Great Service for Over 100 Years
Best Company for 25 Years
At Nordstrom one of the greatest benefits available to employees is that they are basically hired to be nice to people, and they are given the tools, resources and back-up support to do just that. Being nice in business terms means providing outstanding customer service, anticipating and meeting people’s needs, and creating an extraordinary workplace where employees want to work - all hallmarks of Nordstrom since its founding in 1901. External recognition of Nordstrom’s legendary customer service comes often, yet it is the letters from customers that really keep employees going. While some of the service stories are really quite extraordinary what is even more
…show more content…
While competition among salespeople might be expected, the atmosphere at Nordstrom seems to be one of people helping each other to reach higher sales targets, rather than trying to only take care of themselves. People securing higher levels of sales are recognized and rewarded, yet others are encouraged and provided with support to increase their own sales as well. No one is left behind. One indication of the competitiveness of overall compensation at Nordstrom comes from a 2007 Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics study covering nearly 4.5 million retail salespersons. In that study the BLS determined that the average wage for retail salespeople was $.79/hour. At Nordstrom, the average salesperson’s pay in 2007 was above $8/hour. Nordstrom also provides a benefits package that includes a 40(k) program where employees may contribute up to 50 percent of their paycheck earnings, of which the company matches dollar for dollar up to 4 percent. An ESPP stock purchase program has been in place since 2000, which provides employees the opportunity to buy Nordstrom stock at a 0 percent discount. Since September 2000, Nordstrom stock value has increased 286 percent, allowing many employees to earn significantly on their
Workers like to know that what they do has a positive impact on the people and world around them. This may be as simple as bringing a smile to a customer’s face, or fixing a problem they have. Happy customers help to make employees happy and keep them motivated. The reward of customer appreciation can go a long way to keeping employees interested in their work on a day to day basis.
Nordstrom is an ideal store based in US equipped with fashionable items that can be bought through coupons availed through Nordstrom coupons. The Nordstrom coupon codes are another way to make discounted deals you can search for on the online web. Women make their important buys of fashionable items which is sold with use of Nordstrom coupon.
Nordstrom would be described as a department store. They carry a wide variety of goods, such as clothing, accessories, handbags, jewelry and cosmetics like other department stores such as Macy’s, JCPenney and Sears. They have a very high level of service as evidenced in the case study about selling just one shoe and taking a return on snow tires when they never sold auto parts. Their prices are fairly high since they carry mostly high-end brands. These are all traits that department stores share.
Through the 70’s the company continued to grow. In 1974 annual sales hit $130 million. By 1980 Nordstrom was the third largest specialty retailer in the country. Sales hit $407 million and in the next few years, sales continued to rise. Nordstrom’s success was due to many factors. Shoes accounted for about 18 percent of total sales. In addition Nordstrom consistently maintained huge inventories and selection, which were usually twice the size of other department stores. Anchor malls seek the company, as a cornerstone of downtown renovation projects or as an added jewel for high end shopping customers. By being able to expand not only by adding locations, but also by expanding merchandise sold, Nordstrom became a dominant force in the industry and strengthened their market share position.
This store is an off-price retailer that buys the overstock or imperfect items from other department stores. The prices are usually lower in contrast to Nordstrom that sells exclusive clothes from various designers. The level of service is much lower than in Nordstrom. Salespeople are not as enthusiastic and motivated to provide that one-on-one attention to their customers. As a result, they do not tend to build long-term relationships with customers. Usually a customer cannot find an item due to the store 's disorganization and it is difficult to ask for help finding specific products. Furthermore, Ross ' strict return policies and guidelines make it difficult for customers to return items.
Nordstrom’s main focus is all about customer satisfaction. When customer satisfaction is high so are the
Nordstrom is one of the top retailers in the United States. With a solid brand image and a sound financial situation, Nordstrom is relentless in their expansion in the US, and are beginning to expand into international markets. Nordstrom takes pleasure in providing state of the art client support and having experienced sales people. In order to hold their position as the most successful high-end retailer in the United States, Nordstrom must continue to figure out ways to improve their brand image and customer satisfaction. Nordstrom’s current business working strategy is successful but I believe there are a few ideal solutions that the organization could apply to further enhance the organization. Due to the aggressive
Customer satisfaction is the customer’s evaluation of a good or service in terms of whether it has met their needs and expectations (Vander Schee, 2016). The culture of the organization is to focus on delighting customers rather than on selling products (Lamb, Hair, & McDaniel, 2017). An example of a highly satisfied customer would be Nicole Snow, who owns a small business in Maine. One day she reached out to FedEx on social networks and asked for help in getting her supply chain set up. The team responded immediately and helped her solve the problem (“FedEx,” 2015). Here customer satisfaction is greatly shown the customers’ needs and expectations have been met by
Nordstrom’s is classified as one of the biggest U.S. department stores. Along with Sears, Macy’s, and JC Penny’s, Nordstrom manages each department in their stores as an individual buying center. Every group functions separately from one another, and is administered by a buyer who is in charge of all varieties and styles of merchandise sold. Promotions that can be used in the stores are included, as well. “The company has also benefited from a new computerized inventory system that gives buyers and salespeople the necessary data to make smarter decisions about what is needed in the stores—and what isn’t.” (Lamb, Hair, McDaniel 569). This new and improved system allows the department store to market a greater amount of full priced items, which ultimately increase sales. The buyer is also able to easily determine what items to obtain and exhibit in the store by using this system.
Historically speaking, Canada has never been a great market for American retailers. The Canadian dollar was weak, costs were higher, and with limited real estate development, it was difficult to find space. Not anymore, now the door to Canada is opening wider than ever thanks to a stronger Canadian dollar, a relatively robust economy, and a loosening of the commercial real estate market, in part because of the downsizing of some longtime retailers like Sears Canada. For American retailers, Canada’s allure is simple; sales per square foot at Canadian malls were almost 50 percent higher in 2011 than sales per square foot at American malls. This is a budding market that Nordstrom will need to act
Nordstrom’s employees and management are the company’s most valuable resource. An article written in the Seattle PI describes exactly why this is true. It states that, “Nordstrom salespeople make decisions as if managing their own business; they are trusted to do what is right. Everyone else in the company is there to help the sales staff make the sale and please the customer” (Mulady, 2009). The way the employees are treated and valued is a perfect portrayal of the company’s mission of providing the best possible customer service and value to the customer.
Time value of money. With the initial $700 million expansion investment, and growth projected at 3% year-over-year for the next five years, the best-case scenario would be most beneficial for Nordstrom to pursue. Whereas, the best-case scenario’s cash flows are 20% higher than the average-case scenario, and the worst-case scenario’s cash flows are 20% less. The conclusion that the best-case scenario is the most lucrative investment opportunity for Nordstrom is based on the factors of Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), and pack back values, with a discount rate of 10%, and a payback goal of five years. Together, NPV, IRR, and payback values, shed light on factors based on predictability, and are outlined in Table 2. However,
We don’t rely on promotions, be it one-day sales, coupons, or “friends of friends” sales. We think our regular pricing has to have integrity.” Fifth is presentation, where the stores image is determined. Nordstrom is known for its relaxed upscale image. Sixth is personnel or customer service, where employees assist customers with their shopping experience. Nordstrom’s personnel are outstanding while they may not serve customers champagne they definitely will go out of their way to assist customers. I think that their personnel have to be the reason behind their success. Whether the story about the customer buying one shoe or the customer returning tires are true or not, gives the current and potential customers a sense of comfort and good customer service beats prices any day.
For instance, Jason Felix, a Human Resources Technician with College of the Desert describes his thought after having dealt with a rude applicant over the phone, “while physical labor is no walk in the park, dealing with people can leave you just as drained, if not more, and it can take longer to regain your emotional stability” (J. Felix, personal communication, January 30, 2017). After having been cut off, yelled at, and harangued, Jason had to still go about his day as if nothing happened. The use of good customer service in the face of disrespect is reminiscent Karl Marx writes, “the realization of labor appears as a loss of reality for the worker”. It is not the real person who is being polite but the person created for the work environment that is required to be polite. With this in mind, having to create an atmosphere of happiness when one isn’t feeling happy could result in the depersonalization of happiness with the self (Herpertz et al, 2016). The problem then turns into the employee not knowing whether they are actually happy or is only so used to being happy. How does the employee then adjust to the “real world” outside of the workplace? In A Managed Heart by Arlie Russell Hochschild, she speaks with airline attendants who must always create a positive space for passengers, their smiles being of most value to the company. One flight attendant interviewed is quoted saying, “Sometimes I
During research on this final project, the author found an example of Wal-Mart's communication in backing customer service. A Wal-Mart customer returned a completely thawed turkey including all the fixings for a dinner because her relatives could not make it due to car trouble (Now That's Customer Support, 2006). Wal-Mart returned the customer's money which was $19 plus some change and the customer returned the complete turkey dinner which included two boxes of stuffing, some cranberries, stuff to make pumpkin pies, green beans and a package of rolls (Now That's Customer Support, 2006).