Governance:
Nordstrom has been a company that has been passed down from generation to generation within the Nordstrom family. Currently, the company is being controlled by brothers Blake, Peter, Erik, and their second cousin Jamie, all making up the fourth generation of Nordstrom's in charge of the company (Forbes article). They currently do not have a chief executive officer, but do however seek counsel from an outside chairman who goes by the name of Enrique "Rick" Hernandez Jr. Most other department store chains have 2 classes of stock to ensure that the founders have extra voting power. However, the Nordstrom family does not believe in that. They own the same kind of paper as any other shareholder. They currently own about $2.5 billion worth, which is equal to approximately one-fourth of Nordstrom's outstanding shares (Forbes article).