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Nordstrom Rack shuts doors in Langley as chain leaves Canada

All 13 Nordstroms and Nordstrom Racks in Canada will be closed
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Over 350 customers were waiting in line before Nordstrom Rack officially opened its doors Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020. The first customer lined-up at 3 a.m. (Langley Advance Times files)

Nordstrom is shutting down its Canadian operations and closing all stores, including the Nordstrom Rack outlet in Langley.

There were six Nordstrom outlets and seven Nordstrom Racks in Canada before this decision. One of the Rack locations was in the Willowbrook Shopping Centre.

“We also made the difficult decision to wind down operations in our Canadian business,” said Erik Nordstrom, chief executive officer of Nordstrom, Inc., in a statement about the company’s fourth-quarter earnings. “This will enable us to simplify our operations and further increase our focus on driving long-term profitable growth in our core U.S. business.”

Online retailing through the Nordstrom.ca website is to cease as of March 2 this year, with the stores fully closed up by June.

The closures will result in about 2,500 employees in the Canadian stores losing their jobs.

“We entered Canada in 2014 with a plan to build and sustain a long-term business there. Despite our best efforts, we do not see a realistic path to profitability for the Canadian business,” Nordstrom said. “We want to thank our team for their performance and dedication in serving customers in Canada. This decision will simplify our structure, intensify focus on our growth and profitability goals and position us to create greater value for our shareholders.”

Langley’s Nordstrom Rack had only been in operation for a few years, opening its doors in September, 2020.

The opening drew shoppers who lined up for hours. The first person in line arrived at 3 a.m. that morning.

READ MORE: ‘We’ll definitely come back!’ Langley Nordstrom Rack opening a hit

The clothing store replaced the Sears that had anchored that end of the Willowbrook mall for decades.

This is the second major U.S. chain to pull out of Canada in recent weeks, following the departure of Bed Bath & Beyond, which also had a store in Langley, on the Langley Bypass.

READ MORE: Bed Bath & Beyond to close in Langley and across Canada


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Matthew Claxton

About the Author: Matthew Claxton

Raised in Langley, as a journalist today I focus on local politics, crime and homelessness.
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