Nordstrom Proposes $3.8B Deal to Go Private

Nordstrom is looking to go private, with members of the Nordstrom family offering $3.8 billion to seal the deal, according to a report from The Seattle Times.

Nordstrom CEO Erik Nordstrom and his brother Pete, who serves as president of the company, announced Wednesday they had been exploring ways to take the upscale department store chain private. They formed a group with other family members and the Mexican department store chain El Puerto de Liverpool, which took a nearly 10 percent stake in the company two years ago, according to The Seattle Times. Together, the Nordstrom brothers and the Mexican department store have a nearly 44 percent stake of the company.

The offer is for $23 per share, according to a Nordstrom press release. The company said a committee of independent and disinterested directors would review the Nordstrom family's proposal.

Total Retail's Take: The Seattle Times reported that Nordstrom previously tried and failed to take the company private at $50 a share in 2018. In the last several months, Macy's has also initiated talks to take the company private, with investors Arkhouse Management and Brigade Capital offering $24 per share or $6.58 billion, according to Reuters.

U.S. department store sales have been falling for several years now, thanks to several factors, including Americans doing more of their spending online — accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic — and that has forced several department store chains to file bankruptcy, including Boscov's, Stein Mart, Lord & Taylor, Neiman Marcus, and JCPenney.

Taking a public company private would release the company from the pressures of quarterly and annual earning results and from the scrutiny of investors and shareholders.