In this episode of The Retail Pilot, Ken sits down with Pete Nordstrom – Co-CEO of the 125-year-old fashion retailer – to unpack the eight-year journey to go private, the strategic partnership with Liverpool that made it possible, and what's actually changed since May 2025. They explore why the Saks-Neiman Marcus merger created an opening Nordstrom is now seizing, how the Rack is scaling toward 25+ new stores a year, and where AI is genuinely moving the needle.
Pete is candid about the failed 2017 take-private attempt, the Canada expansion that became his generation's "biggest black eye," and why no department store has ever successfully exported its model abroad. This is a conversation about staying relevant across generations, competing with Amazon and Walmart, and the unglamorous discipline of just trying to be the best Nordstrom you can be.

In this episode you'll learn:

• Why Nordstrom went private in May 2025, and why the 2017 attempt failed

• How the Liverpool partnership came together: 51% Nordstrom family, 49% Liverpool, zero pressure to merge or exit

• The real downsides of being a public company: morale, distraction, governance overhead, and a stock price tied to a struggling sector narrative

• What's actually changed day-to-day since going private and the one thing Pete misses about public-company rigor

• Why Pete sees the Saks-Neiman's merger as a once-in-a-generation opportunity for Nordstrom to capture market share

• How Nordstrom is winning brand partnerships, top talent (like Yumi Shin from Bergdorf Goodman), and customers from struggling competitors

• The Rack expansion strategy: 25 stores this year, with capacity to potentially open 50 annually

• Why Nordstrom Rack competes more with Macy's than with TJ Maxx—and what that means for store growth

• The competitive reality of Amazon and Walmart in beauty, marketplace, and replenishment, and why Nordstrom can't get left behind

• Why Nordstrom's marketplace (launched 18 months ago) is one of the company's biggest untapped growth levers

• The Canada lesson: Why no department store has ever succeeded outside its home country – and what Pete learned from trying

• What Pete hopes will be true at Nordstrom's 150th anniversary – and why agility matters more than any specific plan

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If you missed our last episode, where Mickey Drexler tells all on how he operates with startup intimacy and five decades of wisdom, be sure to tune in.

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