"Those two areas are giving us the most challenge in the current environment," Nordstrom Chief Financial Officer Michael Koppel said at a Bank of America conference that was broadcast over the Internet.
California, where a number of retailers have noted weakness as the U.S. housing market has slowed, accounts for nearly one-third of Nordstrom's sales, Koppel said. Sales in that state were below the company average for most of 2007 and continued to weaken in 2008, he added.
Women's apparel began to slump during the third quarter of 2007, he said. While designer clothing and denim were showing strong performance, sales of women's traditional apparel have been a weak spot, Koppel added.
Nordstrom, which competes with Saks Inc (SKS.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Neiman Marcus, has reported lower same-store sales for the past three months as economic worries have slowed customer traffic, including a 5.8 percent fall for February. The company's same-store sales rose in November but fell in October.
Nordstrom's core customer is 25 to 54 years old with household income of at least $100,000.
In late February, Nordstrom reported lower fourth-quarter profit and forecast earnings for the upcoming year below analysts' expectations.
Koppel said Seattle-based Nordstrom planned to open eight stores this year and five stores next year. It currently has about 157 stores in 28 states.
