The president of luxury retailer Nordstrom Inc., operator of a Connecticut store in Farmington’s Westfarms Mall, received compensation valued at about $1.9 million in 2008, according to an Associated Press calculation of data in a regulatory filing.
The pay package awarded to Blake Nordstrom was a 19 percent decrease from his 2007 compensation, mostly because he was not granted a performance-based cash bonus this year.
In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Nordstrom said its weak financial performance last year resulted in “limited or nonexistent” performance-based bonuses for its top executives. In addition, performance-based equity did not vest.
Like many luxury retailers, Nordstrom’s sales have dropped sharply since September as the economy has deteriorated. For 2008, Nordstrom’s same-store sales dropped 9 percent. Same-store sales, or sales at stores open at least a year, are a key indicator of retailer performance since they measure growth at existing stores rather than newly opened ones.
The company’s profit last year tumbled 44 percent to $401 million, or $1.83 per share. Total sales fell 6.3 percent to $8.3 billion.
The president received a salary of $696,111 for 2008, slightly less than his base pay of $698,056 in 2007.
He was awarded stock and option awards that were valued by the Seattle-based company at $1.1 million when they were granted in February 2008. However, a large portion of that award has since deteriorated in value with Nordstrom’s stock price.
