Nordstrom Case Study

Nordstrom is a department store retailer. As a department store Nordstrom carries various specialty products and purchases of these products are generally made within the departments, rather than one main checkout. Like other department stores such as Macy's, JC Penney, and Sears, Nordstrom has a particular set distinct policy about which type of merchandise they will be selling. Another characteristic that Nordstrom shares with other department stores is their goal of having complete customer satisfaction with all their customers.

To describe Nordstrom's level of service on the continuum from full service to self-service, I would place Nordstrom at the top of the continuum offering full service. I would place Nordstrom at the top of this continuum because of its idea that customer service is their chief objective. This can be explained in various stories such as the salesperson who sold one shoe to a women, the salesman who kept a personal note of each of his 12,000 customers over the years, and an employee driving to the airport to give a customer their forgotten tickets. It is from stories such as this that describe how employees put customer satisfaction first. Their level of service is full because of everything they will do for you. Employees will take every opportunity to help the consumer learn more or make a decision. An example of a store on the opposite end of this continuum would be Costco. Costco would be described as a self-service store. While in a Costco you are by yourself. Unlike Nordstrom, there are no employees walking around trying to help you in your purchasing. In a Costco you must shop on your own without any employee input or advice. Unlike Nordstrom, Costco is a do it yourself store.

Of the six components of Nordstrom's retailing mix, I believe that the Personnel aspect has been the most important factor to the company's success. Personnel seem to be a key characteristic for the continuation of Nordstrom's. The personnel and customer service aspect of selling is something that Nordstrom is looking for when selling to prospective customers. As Eric Nordstrom says he wants his customers to feel as if they are treating themselves when shopping at Nordstrom's. The personnel component of the retailing mix is also portrayed in Nordstrom's generous exchange policy. With this exchange policy of basically allowing anything to be exchanged, Nordstrom is continuously adding to their consumer base through customer's satisfaction with the personnel of Nordstrom's. Although they have relied on their price as well as personnel to add to their company's success, it does not seem as important. Without the right personnel and customer satisfaction, it would not have mattered what the price was, Nordstrom's would not be as powerful as it is now.