San Francisco (KGO) – Nordstrom plans to close both of its stores in downtown San Francisco, choosing not to renew the lease inside Westfield Mall, the store confirmed Tuesday.
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Neighboring downtown rack Nordstrom will also close.
The Nordstrom shelf will have its last working day on Market Street on July 1, and the Nordstrom inside Westfield Mall is scheduled to close at the end of August.
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The company’s chief store officer wrote in an email to employees that “Downtown San Francisco’s market dynamics have changed dramatically over the past several years, affecting customer traffic to our stores and our ability to operate successfully.”
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Westfield Mall said in a statement that the closure “highlights the deteriorating situation in downtown San Francisco.”
“Nordstrom’s planned closure underscores the deteriorating situation in downtown San Francisco,” a mall spokesperson said. “An increasing number of retailers and businesses are leaving the region due to the unsafe conditions for customers, retailers and employees, coupled with the fact that these significant issues are preventing economic recovery in the region.”
Jimmy Nordstrom, Head of Stores, sent the following message to employees:
“Today we announced that we have made the difficult decision not to renew the leases at the San Francisco Center Nordstrom store and the Market Street Rack store across the street. The last business day for Market Street Rack will be July 1 and we intend to close the San Francisco Center at the end of August.
Decisions like this are never easy, and this one was particularly difficult. We’ve spent more than 35 years serving clients in downtown San Francisco, building relationships with them and investing in the local community. But as many of you know, the dynamics of the downtown San Francisco market have changed dramatically over the past several years, which has affected customer traffic to our stores and our ability to operate successfully. With both leases expiring, and after looking closely at our opportunities in the region, we believe we can better serve our customers by focusing on our 16 locations near Nordstrom and Nordstrom Racklocations, as well as online.
I want to be really clear that this decision has nothing to do with our team’s hard work. They should be proud of all that they have achieved together and of the way they have appeared and served the community. We are working with each affected employee to support them through this transition and to find new roles within the company wherever possible.
Stores continue to play a critical role in delivering our Closer to You strategy, and we remain opportunistic for new store locations, relocations and new concepts. We also remain committed to the Gulf region market and have made significant investments in our stores there over the past several years. We recently announced the opening of a new Nordstrom Rack store in Pinole, California, and completed the redesign of our Valley Fair Nordstrom store. “
Read the full statement from Westfield Mall below:
Nordstrom’s planned shutdown underscores the deteriorating situation in downtown San Francisco. An increasing number of retailers and businesses are leaving the area due to unsafe conditions for customers, retailers, and employees, along with the fact that these significant issues are preventing the area’s economic recovery.
URW has actively engaged with city leaders for many years to express our serious concerns, which are shared by our customers and retailers. We have urged the city to find solutions to the major issues and lack of enforcement against rampant criminal activity.
The current environment is not sustainable for society or business, and we hope the city will implement the urgently needed changes.”
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