Defining a parent company’s DNA to connect its affiliates and unify their experiences
Nordstrom
Practice
Industry
- Retail
Services
- Brand architecture
- Brand strategy
- Experience prototyping
- Brand naming and nomenclature
For over a century, Nordstrom has based its brand on exceptional customer service. But with extensions like Nordstrom Rack and the acquisitions of HauteLook and Trunk Club, customers were lacking a clear understanding of the relationship and value between Nordstrom’s affiliate brands. Nordstrom turned to Liquid Agency to help articulate its principal brand’s defining qualities while identifying the role each sub-brand plays with customers.
Our first step was to rethink Nordstrom’s brand architecture. Liquid Agency collaborated with stakeholders from its flagship company and affiliates to craft a strategy called “One Nordstrom DNA.” The platform unified Nordstrom’s core aspiration and experience principles, but also offered affiliate brands the flexibility to tailor their own brand positioning, promise and personality.
With the brand architecture and endorsement strategy in place, Liquid Agency then created prototypes of an integrated brand experience. Our models helped illustrate how the One Nordstrom brand strategy could come to life across its affiliate brands and ultimately deliver new value for both the brand and its customers.
