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Dive Brief:
In Nordstrom’s latest installment of The Corner pop-up concept, the department store chain is hosting Nike Running @ The Corner inside its New York flagship until Sept. 2, per a Thursday press release.
Within the Nike pop-up shop, the activewear brand will offer footwear and apparel geared toward runners. Nordstrom will also complement the assortment with select women’s running apparel, accessories and customizations.
A series of community events will coincide with the installation, including weekly runs, recovery sessions, ice baths and stretching workshops.
Dive Insight:
Nordstrom has courted other brands in its New York pop-up shop space. Nordstrom hosted luxury apparel brand Bode when it launched the space in March last year, featuring men’s and women’s ready-to-wear and one-of-a-kind garments. This year, the space has welcomed New Balance and the infant carrier and accessories brand Nuna, among others.
“We want Nike Running @ The Corner Nordstrom NYC to be our love letter to runners: a celebration of movement, mindset and personal style,” Olivia Kim, senior vice president of creative at Nordstrom, said in a statement. “It’s about giving our customers the power to choose how they show up for themselves and their goals with the best of Nike innovation and Nordstrom service in one inspiring corner of the city.”
The Nike pop-up will feature women’s apparel and three different running shoe franchises from Nike.
Courtesy of Nordstrom
Nike will host weekly runs and stretching workouts as part of the Nordstrom pop-up.
Courtesy of Nordstrom
The Nordstrom pop-up comes as Nike makes a wholesale push. Nike earlier this year became the first partner for Urban Outfitters’ similar On Rotation concept and is also reprioritizing other relationships. During a December earnings call with analysts, Nike CEO Elliott Hill said the company would work to rebuild its wholesale partner relationships after prioritizing DTC for years.
It’s one part of a turnaround strategy as the iconic activewear brand faces falling revenues. In its Q4 earnings report in June, for example, Nike reported a 10% drop in full-year revenues to $46.3 billion.
For Nordstrom, the New York pop-up space is just one way to change up merchandising in stores. In March, Nordstrom debuted Universal Standard, the direct-to-consumer women’s brand, at 20 of its stores, including in Chicago, Minneapolis and Seattle. The department store also continues to expand its partnership with custom suits maker Indochino, which is now in 33 Nordstrom locations.
Along with growing its product assortment, Nordstrom has also expanded its physical footprint through both off-pricer Rack and its small-format Nordstrom Local stores. New York is a key market for Nordstrom and the retailer highlighted the flagship location in a series of campaigns in recent months starring notable New Yorkers including filmmaker Spike Lee and actors Amy Sedaris and John Turturro.
The Nordstrom family successfully took the company private in a $6.25 billion deal in December, with capital from the Nordstrom family and Mexican retail conglomerate El Puerto de Liverpool. When Nordstrom officially left the New York Stock Exchange in May, the Nordstrom family maintained a controlling stake in the business.