Nordstrom has closed its flagship store in downtown San Francisco. The company joins a long list of brands that have ceased operations on Market Street over the past year.
Nordstrom decided to close its flagship store in San Francisco in the spring of 2023. The company stated that “downtown market dynamics have changed dramatically over the past few years, impacting the store’s traffic and ability to operate successfully.”
In its final days of operation, the store stood with half-empty windows and naked mannequins. Experts are worried about the future of downtown San Francisco, from which global brands are fleeing. The problems began during the pandemic when workers didn’t return from remote work, sales declined, and retail stores closed.
In 2023, the vacancy rate in the retail corridor hit a record high of 6%. The last time this amount of vacant space was seen was in 2006. Additional pressure on tenants comes from rising crime in the area.
X (Twitter) owner Elon Musk said the company’s headquarters, located a few blocks from Nordstrom, is not looking to move amid the overall trend. “The city is in a doom spiral: one by one, companies are leaving,” Elon Musk said. “We’re not going to do that… San Francisco, beautiful San Francisco, let others leave you, we will always be your friend.”
