What history reveals about fate of former Vancouver Nordstrom location

An empty Nude can sits outside the former rear entrance of Nordstrom, now locked up and covered by a mural. (Amir Ali/Daily Hive)

It has been six months since Nordstrom in downtown Vancouver closed, so what’s next for this potential goldmine of a retail location, and does the past provide any hints?

Once a downtown fixture, the Vancouver Nordstrom location’s closure was announced in March when the luxury department store chain said it was closing all of its Canadian stores.

Even though the Vancouver store was Nordstrom’s best-performing, it wasn’t enough to prevent the location from being weighed down by the country’s other locations and ultimately closing, including its Ebars.

So, what does the future hold for the location? And what does the history of this space tell us?

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Daily Hive Urbanized has reached out to Cadillac Fairview, but last we heard, there were no updates to share. The same applies to the Four Seasons Hotel, which has been closed since 2020.

Following the closure of Nordstrom, many shared their hopes for what would replace the luxury chain, but theories and speculation are the closest thing we have to any answers.

The latest development at the prime location was a mural that went up, serving as a love letter to Vancouver, making the area seem less deserted.

This new mural by @BillionBuns on the Granville frontage of the former Nordstrom store at Pacific Centre is a love letter to #Vancouver.

Civic pride. ✅https://t.co/uNmpQJzMTX pic.twitter.com/o3GTuHkwPV

— Kenneth Chan (@iamkennethchan) November 17, 2023

While we might not have concrete answers as to what’s coming next, we can look to the past to see how quickly things moved for the location before.

History is not repeating itself

Before Nordstrom, we had Sears.

According to news reports, Sears announced it was closing its Pacific Centre location in March 2012. Oddly, Nordstrom announced its closure on the same day, 11 years later, on March 2. This likely has more to do with fiscal calendars than retail conspiracy theories.

Sears officially closed in October 2012. Fascinatingly, even before that official closure, Nordstrom announced in September 2012 that it would move into the space in 2015.

So, Nordstrom announced it was coming to Vancouver to take over the retail space just six months after Sears announced it was closing.

In this case, history is not repeating itself, as we likely would’ve heard something from the future occupant of the space by now.

However, we can’t underestimate the difference 11 years have made for the retail industry. The economy is wildly different, as are retail shopping habits. People shop online way more than they did back in 2012, and the pandemic significantly impacted the industry.

Still, losing a giant chain like Nordstrom has left an emptiness in downtown Vancouver that a mural alone can’t fill.

What do you want to see fill this space?

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