Nordstrom has appointed Brent Beabout as EVP of Supply Chain, according to an internal email from Co-President Erik Nordstrom to employees. Beabout will assume the position effective April 3.
The retailer has also eliminated 106 customer service jobs, cutting 30 positions in Seattle, 18 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and 58 work-from-home roles across the country. These employees support customers through email, online chat and by phone; they will be paid through April 1.
With Nordstrom emphasizing customer service as a significant element in its offering, the decision to cut from that department is odd at first glance. But a representative for the retailer indicated that recent investments in customer service have actually led to a decline in the number of customers who reach out to customer care for support. As a result, the customer service team was “overstaffed.”
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“We’ve tried different solutions to address the problem, but ultimately decided to reduce roles,” the retailer said in a statement.
While customer service manpower may be less of a necessity for Nordstrom, the hiring of Beabout illustrates that the brand is investing in its omnichannel fulfillment offerings, including store reserve and buy online/pick up in-store.
Beabout most recently served as the Senior VP of eCommerce Supply Chain for Walmart and Sam’s Club. In that role, he was responsible for the strategy, development and execution of an integrated e-Commerce supply chain, fulfillment and logistics network. Prior to working at Walmart, Beabout spent five years at Office Depot as its Senior VP of Supply Chain. He has also worked in supply chain operations at DHL Express and Amazon.
The Beabout hiring is notable in that Nordstrom already has an EVP of Supply Chain in place. Mike Sato still holds the role, according to his LinkedIn page and the Nordstrom corporate governance page. Erik Nordstrom noted in his internal email that Sato “remains in his role and will be supported by” Beabout, so it is unclear if Sato’s title is changing or if the two execs will share responsibilities.
