Nordstrom will lay off 222 workers at its Cedar Rapids, Iowa distribution center on Oct. 18, 2022, according to a WARN notice filed with Iowa Workforce Development, a state agency that manages workplace issues. The facility reportedly employed 1,100 workers prior to the cuts, according to Corridor Business Journal.
“We have made the difficult decision to reduce our workforce at our Midwest fulfillment center in order to better align with the current needs of our business,” said a Nordstrom spokesperson in a statement seen by Corridor Business Journal. “We recognize the impact these changes have on our team members and are committed to taking care of our people as we work through this transition.”
The layoffs come in what Nordstrom expects to be a slow second half of the year despite a successful start to 2022. The retailer reported a 12% sales increase to nearly $4 billion in Q2 2022, but noted that it expects reduced traffic and demand in the back half of the year. It will use this time to focus on “aggressively right-sizing our inventory while investing in supply chain and merchandising capabilities that will benefit us in 2023 and beyond,” said Pete Nordstrom, President and Chief Brand Officer in a statement.
Many other retailers are feeling similar headwinds from inflation and inventory challenges and laying off staff as a result. Other companies making similar moves include:
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- Gap, which is reportedly eliminating approximately 500 corporate jobs, mostly at offices in San Francisco, New York and Asia;
- Walmart, which laid off 200 corporate employees across its merchandising, global technology and real estate teams to “better position the company for a strong future”; and
- Bed Bath & Beyond, which cut 20% of its workforce across the corporate and supply chain divisions.
