Seibu Department Stores and Daimaru Inc. will team up with Nordstrom Inc. of the United States to market Nordstrom's private-brand clothing in Japan, officials of the two companies said Thursday.
The Japanese department store chains obtained exclusive rights from Nordstrom to import and market its Classiques Entier line of women's apparel and a line of men's clothing now under development, the officials said.
This is the first time for Nordstrom to market its products overseas. Seibu and Daimaru will start marketing Nordstrom products at their major outlets next spring.
The U.S. firm decided to tie up with the two Japanese firms, rather than just one, to achieve greater sales; Tokyo-based Seibu has a strong foothold in the Kanto region, and Osaka-based Daimaru's primary market is the Kansai region.
Meanwhile, Seibu and Daimaru, seeing little competition between their outlets, will explore cooperation in the development and distribution of other products.
Nordstrom, which started as a shoe store in Seattle, dramatically expanded its business in the 1980s by promoting customer-oriented services. With some 100 outlets in 22 states in the U.S., the company's sales in fiscal 1998 totaled $5 billion.