SEATTLE — If there has been one constant in downtown Seattle, it is Nordstrom.

The company has given its flagship store and corporate headquarters a front-row seat to the city’s ups and downs.

As Nordstrom celebrates 125 years in business, one of the company’s top executives says its longtime commitment to downtown Seattle remains strong, but the city cannot take its recent progress for granted.

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“We feel great about being downtown,” Nordstrom co-CEO Erik Nordstrom said in an exclusive interview with KOMO News.

The company marked its milestone anniversary with a free public block party near its flagship store at Fifth Avenue and Pine Street, bringing live music, entertainment and crowds into the heart of downtown. It is an example of the public-private partnership that could fuel another renaissance.

“I enjoy the music, I enjoy the people, the atmosphere is great,” attendee Joan Wellman said as she listened to live music outside the store.

Taz Donaldson, who was born and raised in Seattle, said the event offered the kind of energy downtown needs.

“It does make me want to go in there and shop,” Donaldson said. “We need something to draw people back to downtown.”

The celebration was reminiscent of the downtown renaissance of the late ’90s, when street concerts and large public events regularly filled the retail core, and Nordstrom was often at the center of the activity. Nordstrom said public events and private investment can help restore that energy, but businesses cannot do it alone.

Asked about the current customer experience downtown, Nordstrom said conditions have improved since the most difficult years of the pandemic.

“Well, it’s better. There’s no doubt things have improved,” he said. “The pandemic was tough on Seattle, like most cities across the country.”

But he added that city leaders and businesses must continue working together.

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“I’d like to see it continue to improve,” Nordstrom said. “I don’t think we should rest on our laurels, but I’m encouraged with the progress.”

During a regional conference with local mayors in May, Nordstrom said businesses face additional costs when operating downtown, particularly when it comes to security.

“One of the services that’s super important to us is public safety,” he said. “And in particular, when we call the police, do they show up?”

Nordstrom has increasingly pointed to San Francisco as an example of how city government, businesses and nonprofits can align around a downtown recovery strategy.

“What struck me more was the kind of unified energy around the city, of investing in the city from the mayor’s office to businesses to nonprofits,” he told regional leaders.

Nordstrom closed its five-story flagship at San Francisco Centre in August 2023 after nearly 35 years, along with a nearby Nordstrom Rack location. Its departure became one of the most visible symbols of downtown San Francisco’s retail and public safety struggles.

The company returned to the city on a much smaller scale in October 2025, opening a 1,750-square-foot Nordstrom Local on Fillmore Street in the Pacific Heights neighborhood. Unlike a traditional department store, the location does not carry a full retail inventory. It offers online order pickup, returns, alterations, personal styling, gift wrapping and clothing donation services.

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The Fillmore Street location is Nordstrom’s first Local concept in Northern California and its only current location in San Francisco. The company said the format was created in response to customers who wanted easier access to Nordstrom services closer to where they live and work.

The smaller store faced some neighborhood opposition over concerns about traffic, parking and whether a service-focused national retailer would generate as much foot traffic as a traditional neighborhood business. Nordstrom responded by offering validated parking at a nearby garage and incorporating artwork from San Francisco artists into the location.

Nordstrom said the company’s return is part of a broader sense of momentum he has observed in San Francisco.

“I think San Francisco is a great story these days,” he said. “They’ve really focused on their downtown, and it shows. It’s clean, safe. Businesses are returning, tourists are returning. It’s a great residential market. It’s terrific.”

While Nordstrom’s new location is outside San Francisco’s traditional downtown core, he said the city’s broader approach demonstrates what can happen when civic and business leaders share priorities.

“You know, I’m not a politician. I’m a retailer,” Nordstrom said. “But there are things about the environment that only the city can provide. Public safety — we have security, but we can’t solve that on our own. And I think that’s something that San Francisco did really well.”

Nordstrom said the company maintains a good relationship with Seattle officials and the Seattle Police Department. He said he recently met with the police chief and was impressed by the department’s focus on safety. He has also spoken with Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson about the priorities the city and Nordstrom share.

“What my brother and I have tried to emphasize is we have so many goals in common,” Nordstrom said. “We want downtown Seattle to be successful. We want the city to be successful. Obviously, the mayor does as well. So there are lots of common things that we can work on together.”

The company’s roots in downtown Seattle date to 1901, when John W. Nordstrom and Carl Wallin opened a shoe store at Fourth Avenue and Pike Street. Now in its fourth generation of family leadership, Nordstrom remains one of the most recognizable names in the city’s retail core.

As the company begins its next 125 years, Erik Nordstrom said it intends to remain part of downtown Seattle’s future and part of the effort to address the challenges that still confront it.