The Nordstrom Way: The Inside Story of America's #1 Customer Service Company (Hardcover)

by Robert Spector (Author), Patrick D. McCarthy (Author) "A couple of dozen well-groomed and neatly dressed men and women are seated behind a horseshoe configuration of gray tables in a downtown Seattle office..." (more)
Key Phrases: store planning, merchandise manager, sales floor, Bruce Nordstrom, Jim Nordstrom, John Nordstrom (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal
Nordstrom's has long had the reputation for outstanding customer service. This book, coauthored by one of Nordstrom's top sales associates, McCarthy, tells how Nordstrom's earned that reputation. The work combines case studies and personal narrative with some history of the store. Each chapter helps the reader see one or more aspects of what has made Nordstrom's so successful, for example, "The Nordstrom Culture: Setting Employees Free," "The Art of Selling: Retailing Is a Contact Sport," and "What's Inside: Creating an Inviting Place." Each chapter is followed by a one- to two-page summary of the important points. Highly recommended for any business collection.
Michael D. Kathman, St. John's Univ. Lib., Collegeville, Minn.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Description
Advance praise for The Nordstrom Way

"Nobody does it better than Nordstrom. And this is the first thorough, close-up look at its service secrets. A real winner."— Tom Peters President The Tom Peters Group

"Outstanding customer service and Nordstrom's are synonymous. The innovative approach has allowed them to find out what the customers want and then do it. Their standards of service are what we all shoot for."— David D. Glass President and Chief Executive Officer Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

"Nordstrom is a national model for outstanding customer service. American business should use this book as a primer to learn how to make and keep happy, satisfied customers."— J. Willard Marriott, Jr. Chairman and President Marriott International, Inc.

"When you run a family business that includes your customers as extended family, you're unbeatable. This book outlines an American family saga that has become the admiration of the world."— Leonard A. Lauder President and Chief Executive Officer Estée Lauder Companies

"Nordstrom's business is built on one-to-one communication with the customer. Their professional salespeople bridge the gap between the designer and the consumer. The Nordstrom Way is what the '90s are all about!"— Donna Karan Designer and Chief Executive Officer Donna Karan Company

"The Nordstroms 'wrote the book' on customer service. Now we have a chance to read, chapter by chapter, how through four generations, this family has established one of the finest retail institutions in the world."— Peter Strom, Vice Chairman Polo/Ralph Lauren

When it comes to customer service, Nordstrom's standards are "what we all shoot for," declares David Glass, President and CEO of Wal-Mart. "The Nordstrom Way," marveled correspondent Morley Safer in a "60 Minutes" profile, is "not service like it used to be, but service like it never was."

What makes Nordstrom so special? What, exactly, does this retail giant do that so clearly distinguishes it from the competition? How does the Nordstrom customer service culture work? And, most importantly, what lessons can industry learn from Nordstrom's example?

The Nordstrom Way answers these questions and more. Coauthored by top Nordstrom salesman Patrick McCarthy and based on veteran journalist Robert Spector's exclusive, in-depth interviews with the Nordstrom family, senior executives, directors, and salespeople, The Nordstrom Way offers the first inside, uncensored book about this much admired— and much feared— retail powerhouse.

Working at Nordstrom is not for everyone. The authors describe a hotly competitive "Darwinian" culture where 35,000 employees are given freedom to either think and act like entrepreneurs or pass into extinction.

In the course of their analysis, the authors isolate practical lessons that readers can apply to both their professional and personal lives, including:

• Becoming "other-centered" rather than "self-centered"
• Valuing the nobility of service
• Finding and bonding with customers
• Serving and keeping those customers
• Giving frontline people the freedom to make decisions

The Nordstrom Way is a vivid, richly anecdotal chronicle of an American business success story.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 244 pages
• Publisher: Wiley (May 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471584967
• ISBN-13: 978-0471584964
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,654,720 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT INSIGHT INTO CUSTOMER SERVICE BEST PRACTICE, November 30, 1999

By	Azlan Adnan (Kota Kinabalu) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Nordstrom Way: The Inside Story of America's #1 Customer Service Company (Paperback)

A Seattle-based chain of department stores, Nordstrom is acknowledged as `best practice' in outstanding customer service and is the subject of countless MBA case studies. This book tells the Nordstrom customer service story. It reveals how Nordstrom created and maintains a culture of customer service and more importantly how to translate the Nordstrom customer service principles to your own business.

But the desire to implement these principles must come with a commitment from management to customer service and employee empowerment. Management must respect, encourage, honour and reward the people on the front lines for their creativity and ability to serve the customer. Only than will you be able to emulate Nordstrom. Nordstrom's culture encourages entrepreneurial motivated men and women to make the extra effort to give customer service that is unrivalled in American retailing.

At the end of each of the eight chapters is a useful Keys To Success section which summarises the key principles of Nordstrom success discussed in the chapter.

Robert Spector is a Seattle based freelance journalist who has covered Nordstrom since 1982 for a variety of publications. Patrick D. McCarthy of Seattle is one of the top- performing salesman in Nordstrom, where he has worked for more than 20 years. For 15 consecutive years, from 1977 through 1991, McCarthy was the number one salesperson among Nordstrom's 35,000 employees. In 1992, 1993 and 1994, he was runner-up. His journey to financial rewards and job satisfaction serves as an inspiration for every frontline employee in virtually any business.

Reviewed by Azlan Adnan, Managing Partner of Azlan & Koh Knowledge and Professional Management Group.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nordstroms - Still a Solid Read, May 20, 2002

By	"nonicknameguy" (Stillwater, MN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Nordstrom Way: The Inside Story of America's #1 Customer Service Company (Paperback)

This book made a big splash when it hit the stands in 1995. If you are worried about it being outdated, don't be. I found it to be very thorough in it's study of Nordstrom's, and it is still a good lesson in what we should all strive for.

Minimal mistakes that need to be updated in the next revision:
1). Their top notch website is not addressed, however, it does describe the thinking that was held by the company in 1994 to take advantage of the new electronic media. I thought that this section spoke volumes to how far reaching Nordstrom's view of service really is.
2). Very minor changes have been made to their business plan since this book was released. Most of these changes would be evident to the keen observer after 10 minutes in their store.

All in all, I recommend this book to anyone who is studing how to change attitudes on customer service. If you are just looking for a book on sales, this is not for you.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Service is almost Spiritual at Nordstroms, April 18, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Nordstrom Way: The Inside Story of America's #1 Customer Service Company (Paperback)

Thinking about applying for a position at Nordstrom's, I bought this book to do a little investigating. I ended up reading the book in three days, which is quite a feat for this reader.

Understanding the history of the Nordstrom Family, how their great grandfather from Switzerland put together a small shoe shop with gold he found, was inspirational. Then hearing how humble the Nordstroms are, their democratic way of making decisions within the family, and the simple customer service philosophy, made the family very endearing to me. I'm thinking about a career change so I can help people in general, and I've found this is the store's customer service philosophy. Although they are helping people for their own profit, they still make people feel special by the attention and respect they pay to the customer. I very much recommend this book to any customer service professional, or anyone interested in public service.

Just leaving a customer service organization, I know most companies will not allow the customer service rep to have the accountability and freedom to serve the customer as Nordstroms does. But there are great ideas in this book that will allow any customer service rep to make a difference in serving and owning their customers.