Abstract

The case deals with the inventory and merchandise management efforts undertaken by the US-based specialty retailer Nordstrom during the late 1990s and early 21st century. After providing a brief background of the company, the case details the problems it landed in by the early 1990s due to the changing industry dynamics. The case then analyzes how Nordstrom realized that its poor performance was largely due to its not adopting modern inventory management practices. Thereafter, the features and implementation of the new perpetual inventory management system adopted by the company are examined in detail. The case ends with information on how Nordstrom was reaping the initial fruits of its efforts in late-2003. Finally, it provides information on the two general inventory models adopted by firms - the P and Q systems.

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• Inventory management in operations management framework.

Keywords

Inventory, merchandise management, US, Nordstrom, 1990, background, problems, industry dynamics, poor performance, modern inventory management, perpetual inventory management system, 2003, inventory models , P and Q systems