Saratoga News

Photograph by Robert Scheer

Nordstrom Rack plans to move into Westgate Mall, taking over space formerly occupied by Home Express.

Can Saratoga merchants turn the move to their advantage?

By Sarah Lombardo

Plans for a Nordstrom Rack, the off-price division of Nordstrom Inc., to move into Westgate Mall on Saratoga Avenue are meeting with mixed reactions from the Saratoga business community.

Some officials see the store's move as a challenge to Saratoga merchants; others think it might provide a good pool of shoppers from which Saratoga businesses can draw.

"It can be [good for local businesses] if our merchants and the Chamber of Commerce use the advertising and promotional material at their disposal to call attention to our city," Saratoga Mayor and Saratoga Business Development Council member Don Wolfe said.

Wolfe said he thought local merchants could use the popular discount retail store's move--and that of other stores during Westgate's renovation--so close to Saratoga to their advantage.

"I feel [businesses] can attract Westgate clientele to visit our city for the purpose of shopping," he said.

M&H Property Management announced last month that the store had signed a lease to build a 45,000-square-foot store at the mall, and signs recently posted outside what used to be the Home Express location declare the Nordstrom Rack is under construction.

Paula Stanley, spokeswoman for Nordstrom Rack, said the company chose the Westgate location because of the other stores already or scheduled to be at the mall.

"Basically, it was the mix of stores they are bringing in we think will really complement Nordstrom," she said.

There is no set date for the store's completion, but the Westgate location will bring the number of California Nordstrom Racks to six. The Rack has been popular in the past for offering designer clothing and accessories for much less than regular Nordstrom prices. The stores also carry discounted end-of-season, special-purchase and overstock items from other Nordstrom stores.

Chamber president Kristin Davis, who also owns The Front Window on Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road, said attracting Westgate customers might be easier said than done.

"I think it's going to be hard for any businesses in Saratoga to draw the crowd from the Nordstrom Rack," she said. But Davis also stressed that it would not be impossible to take advantage of the influx of shoppers so close to Saratoga's border.

Davis said she believes what keeps many shoppers away from Saratoga's shopping districts is the misconception outsiders have about the prices in the area. People, she said, assume that Saratoga stores must be expensive. "And that's not true," she said.

Davis said she is hopeful that local merchants will find a way to turn the Nordstrom Rack move to their advantage.

"I think that it would be great if we could keep those people flowing up Saratoga Avenue and into the heart of the city," she said.

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