Photo: Nordstrom
Does Nordstrom Rack Need To Rebrand?
Nordstrom Rack, celebrating its 50th anniversary, has rolled out a new logo inspired by the one used in the ‘70s and ‘80s to differentiate the off-price chain from its competitors better.
“The refreshed Nordstrom Rack brand identity reflects the authentic, empowered and expressive spirit of our customers and communicates the ‘more-ness’ of the Rack — more fashion, more of their favorite brands, more deals, more access in store and online,” Red Godfrey, VP of creative at Nordstrom, said in a press release.
He told Advertising Age that Rack’s “old identity system had become a bit similar to what else is out there.”
The curved letterforms and brighter palette “suggest a turn towards a louder, more confident brand expression,” according to Itsnicethat.com, a site for illustrators.
The updated logo, which will eventually be featured on all new and remodeled stores, more closely aligns the Nordstrom full-line and Rack brands, illustrating the company’s interconnected business model. Nordstrom’s off-price business has long been its biggest contributor of new customers and sales compound when customers shop both concepts. Ninety percent of the top 50 brands at Nordstrom’s full-price stores are also carried at Rack.
Nordstrom plans to open 20 Rack locations this year despite underperforming for a few years. Rack’s fourth-quarter same-store sales fell eight percent due to weakness from lower-income customers, although the leading off-pricers, TJX Cos. and Ross Stores, managed positive gains over the period.
Rack continues its renewed emphasis on “premium” offerings after a past approach to bring in lower-priced items to reach a wider audience didn’t resonate with the chain’s core customers.
On Nordstrom’s fourth-quarter call with analysts, Erik Nordstrom, CEO, reiterated that Rack’s fans are seeking “newness” over deals that can be found elsewhere. “We are prioritizing 100 nationally recognized strategic brands to help us drive sales and grow market share,” he said. “Simply put, we know we win with customers at the Rack when we deliver great brands at great prices. We believe strong brand recognition drives outsized customer engagement, and these brands are proven performers, many of which are not widely available in the off-price space.”
Discussion Questions
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: Do you believe Rack’s renewed focus on “premium” offerings will pay off and does the elevated positioning need bolder messaging? What will the chain need besides a new logo to successfully rebrand itself?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Gary Sankary
Retail Industry Strategy, Esri
Liza Amlani
Principal and Founder, Retail Strategy Group
Being the purist/nostalgic that I am, I seldom understand why businesses rebrand, but then my field of expertise is systems and technology and not marketing. A logo that has been around for years, and is easily recognizable, and with which consumers identify is plenty good enough for me. Whether the “premium offerings” work for the company or not remains to be seen.
Timely article. I overheard quite a bit of grumbling in my house this past week about my family’s favorite off-price retailer: Nordstrom Rack. The consensus of this very tiny but vocal focus group is that the merchandise in the Rack is not anything that one might find in a Nordstrom. This means the differentiation between Nordstrom and other off-price retailers just isn’t there. I’m glad to see the rebranding, and it sounds like they’re extending that effort to store assortments. I think they’ll be successful if they can raise the bar on the brands in the stores, and give customers access to unique, Nordstrom-quality brands at off-price store retail prices.
The old/new logo is fine, but if Nordstrom wants to align the Rack brand with the company identity then it’s all about the content. Using it as a clearance center for full-line Nordstrom stores isn’t enough — and duplicating what customers may find at TJX stores isn’t enough either.
If Rack has decided what they want to be when they grow up, then the logo is fine.
I like Rack because it’s a treasure hunt whenever I walk into their stores. Because of who they are, I know I will find premium brands at great prices–logo or not. I hope the logo can add to that.
Frankly, I think this is a mistake. The appeal to consumers is the word Nordstrom, not the word Rack. Deemphasizing Nordstrom makes Rack just another discounter selling branded product at an allegedly lower cost. A brand is a promise, and the promise of Nordstrom is high quality, great service, and style. The promise of Rack? Well — there’s the problem in one word.
Precisely. Exactly. Hit the nail on the head.
A rebrand to Rack is not going to fix the off-price retailer’s fundamental issue. Merchandising and assortment strategies are what brings customers to stores. Brands for less and a product mix that is a treasure hunt for the off-price customer is what shoppers want. Nordstrom’s focus should be on the right product at the right time and at the right price. They need to take a page out the TJX book and find out why customers shop at their stores weekly or more. It’s all about product. Branding will not make a dent in profitability and gross margin if the assortment strategy hasn’t changed. Leadership has been making promises about The Rack’s assortment for years. I’ll believe the change when I see it.
It’s telling that Erik Nordstrom talks about the retro Rack logo in terms of “newness” that customers are seeking. Form over substance, and sadly a continuing lack of inspiration from what was once one of the iconic retail brands in the world.
A rebrand is good if you’re about to grow, make a change in offering/experience, or to break away from what wasn’t working. But the experience and content must noticeably change for a shift to be believable by customers.
I’m not making judgements so early on their rebrand. Nordstrom Rack may be smart in emphasizing a brand shift now because of our teetering economy, with real financial pressures on consumers. If anything, shoppers want a deal now more than ever, regardless of their income level.
Loving the blue color scheme in the AdAge article showing a photo of a shoe department with blue wall paint.
It looks so Ross.
Or so Macy’s Backstage.
I think they better scrap this idea…