Nordstrom Inc. said it is hiring 11,800 seasonal workers for its full-priced Nordstrom stores and the off-price Nordstrom Rack units. E-commerce is also affecting holiday hiring, with some workers planned for fulfillment centers that support the Web sites.
Last year, Nordstrom hired 10,700 across the company, so the increase is a little over 1,000 this year. Dan Evans for Nordstrom said, “The number is up based on the growth of the company over last year and to be sure we best serve customers.”
Sixteen hundred workers will be hired just to handle orders from nordstrom.com, nordstromrack.com and HauteLook. Three shifts are available as the company looks to process the online orders as quickly as possible. HauteLook is getting an additional 150 holiday workers as Nordstrom ramps up for more online sales. Nordstrom opened a new fulfillment center in August for Nordstrom.com in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania to support Nordstrom.com growth, which is contributing to the need for more workers.
Related Galleries
“The holiday season is one of the busiest times of the year for us and that means we need to hire additional people. We’re looking to fill both sales and support positions with hardworking, passionate folks that are focused on taking care of the customer. We want to provide the best possible service experience, no matter how our customers choose to shop with us and that takes good people,” said Jamie Nordstrom, president of stores. “A lot of Nordstrom employees began their careers in a temporary or seasonal role. It’s one of the best ways to get your foot in the door, gain some great experience and we hope, begin a career with our company.”
Nordstrom has 319 stores in 39 states, including 120 full-line stores, 188 Nordstrom Rack stores and two Jeffrey boutiques. Nordstrom did say that some of these seasonal jobs could lead to more permanent positions. Last year, Nordstrom remained closed for Thanksgiving, but so far has not made an announcement about this year’s holiday.
Overall, the National Retail Federation has forecast that holiday sales will gain 3.7 percent, which is slightly weaker than the 2014 holiday season. Macy’s also recently revealed it was gearing up for its seasonal workers, just a tad less than last year’s hires.