Nordstrom, one of many national retailers battered by the pandemic, has added a new arrow to its quiver as it fights an uphill battle to get customers, particularly young ones, back: It is teaming up with Asos, the online fashion behemoth, the New York Times reported. Nordstrom will announce today that it is buying a minority stake in the Asos unit that owns Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge and HIIT, which Asos acquired out of bankruptcy this year. Nordstrom will also start a partnership with Asos that will bring the retailer’s brands into department stores and allow Asos shoppers to pick up and return products at Nordstrom and Nordstrom Rack stores. The financial details of the deal were not disclosed. Nordstrom has been trying to shed its association with other mall-based department stores. It has been shrinking its full-price store locations while rapidly expanding its off-price Nordstrom Rack chain, whose stores are often in strip malls. Nordstrom has also been making investments to better link its digital operations with its physical stores, through initiatives like establishing locations where customers can pick up and return online purchases. The deal secures a physical foothold for Asos in North America, and it will help Nordstrom improve its assortment and services for millennials and a growing cohort of Generation Z shoppers, said Peter Nordstrom, the president of the namesake chain and its chief brand officer.
