This is a photo of 3 generations of the Nordstrom family celebrating Mr. Bruce being recognized with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2018 Footwear News Achievement Awards in NYC. This event is the Oscars of the shoe industry. It was a proud moment for all Nordstrom employees.
The first time I saw Mr. Bruce was in the year 2000 at the employee rally for store #220, our Chicago store on Michigan Avenue. I was still new to the company and brand new to Marketing. My manager thought it would be a good Nordstrom “immersion” for me to attend and work the store opening. I was wandering around in a massive event space packed with Nordstrom employees … great music was playing and hundreds of Nordstrom employees were enjoying BBQ, celebrating our pending store opening and getting pumped up before opening day. The next thing I knew, a store employee climbed up on stage and danced up a storm by herself. The next thing I knew she was beckoning a gentleman to join her. I had no idea who he was, but I heard someone in the audience say “That’s Mr. Bruce.”
The fact that the CEO and patriarch of this company joined an employee he had never met before on stage to share in her excitement and dance a happy dance is a testament to the connections that Mr. Bruce made everywhere he went. I was very touched by this gesture and it actually brought a tear to my eye that I worked for a place where these types of connections existed. I realized that this Nordstrom place was a very special place where people really mattered.  Mr. Bruce really lead by example.
Another fond memory of Mr. Bruce’s noble nature was at our NYC Flagship opening. It was opening day in October of 2019. We were all lined up to clap in the customers and when Mr. Bruce and Jeannie walked into the store, the entire crowd ROARED…and I cried a couple happy tears of joy again.”  –Pamela Lopez, Marketing