Elmer J. Nordstrom (November 23, 1904 – April 4, 1993) was an American businessman, co-president of

Nordstrom Nordstrom, Inc. () is an American luxury department store chain headquartered in Seattle, Washington, and founded by John W. Nordstrom and Carl F. Wallin in 1901. The original Wallin & Nordstrom store operated exclusively as a shoe store, and ...

, the department store chain founded by his father,

John W. Nordstrom John W. Nordstrom (born Johan Wilhelm Nordström, ; February 15, 1871 – October 11, 1963) was a Swedish American businessman who was the co-founder of the Nordstrom department store chain. Background He was born Johan Wilhelm Nordström (later ...

Early life

He was born in Seattle on November 23, 1904, the second son of

and Hilda Carlson. He graduated from Broadway High School in 1923, and from the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

Career

In 1928, John W. Nordstrom retired and sold his shares of Wallin & Nordstrom to his two eldest sons, Everett and Elmer. In 1929, Carl Wallin also retired and sold his shares to them. 1930 marked the change of name to Nordstrom. In 1933, the third son Lloyd joined. They ran the business as co-presidents. The three brothers focused on good value and quality, coupled with customer service, and by the 1960s, had the largest independent shoe store chain in the US, and the largest store in the country in downtown Seattle. In 1963, they bought Best Apparel, a Seattle-based women's clothing store, followed by a Portland, Oregon fashion retail store in 1966. They now offered shoes and clothing for all the family under the new name, Nordstrom Best. In 1968, all three brothers retired, and the next generation took over - Everett's son,

Bruce Nordstrom Bruce A. Nordstrom (born October 1, 1933) is an American billionaire businessman, and the former chairman of the retailer Nordstrom, a company founded by his grandfather John W. Nordstrom. He ran the company from 1968 until 1995 and resumed his ...

; Elmer's sons, James and John; Lloyd's son-in-law, Jack McMillan, along with family friend Bob Bender.

Personal life

He was married to Katharine "Kitty" Johanson, and they had two sons, James and John Nordstrom. His father-in-law, Dr. Nils Johanson, founded the

Swedish Medical Center Swedish Health Services, formerly Swedish Medical Center, is the largest nonprofit health provider in the Seattle metropolitan area. It operates five hospital campuses (in the Seattle neighborhoods of First Hill, Cherry Hill and Ballard, and th ...

in Seattle, and Nordstrom joined the hospital board in 1935, and remained on it for over 50 years. He served on the boards of nonprofit organizations including the Pacific Northwest Research Foundation, the Northwest Kidney Foundation and The Arthritis Foundation.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nordstrom, Elmer J 1904 births 1993 deaths Businesspeople from Seattle University of Washington alumni American people of Swedish descent Elmer J. 20th-century American businesspeople