Nordstrom’s third-quarter net sales declined year on year, which – according to an analyst – largely reflects the company’s struggle to adapt to changing consumer preferences and shifting retail market landscape.

But it has turned into a profit.

The department store chain’s net sales fell 6.8 per cent to $3.2 billion, which includes the negative impact of the wind-down of its Canadian operations. Total revenue during the quarter slid 6.4 per cent to $3.3 billion.

“The most concerning thing about Nordstrom is that it is now a materially smaller business than it was back in 2019,” said Neil Saunders, MD at GlobalData.

He added that Nordstrom lacked effort in areas such as merchandising and ranging, leading to less relevance among customers.

Meanwhile, the company swung to net earnings of $67 million from a net loss a year ago.

For the first three quarters, Nordstrom’s net sales declined 8.9 per cent to $9.9 billion while revenue dipped 8.4 per cent to $10.3 billion.

“Given continued uncertainty and softening consumer spend, we’re remaining agile and focused on serving our customers,” said Erik Nordstrom, CEO at Nordstrom.

“We have a strong and relevant assortment of brands and products we know our customers respond to, and we’re excited to help them celebrate the moments that matter this holiday season,” said Pete Nordstrom, president.

For FY23, the company forecasts revenue to decline by between 4 per cent and 6 per cent.