# Billionaire Cohen builds stake in Nordstrom, urges board shakeup Author: Pal Sinha, Barnali Author URL: https://financedigest.com/author/pal-sinha-barnali Published: 2023-02-03 Category: NEWS Category URL: https://financedigest.com/category/news Meta Title: Billionaire investor Ryan Cohen seeks board shake-up at Nordstrom Meta Description: Billionaire investor Ryan Cohen is making moves at Nordstrom, aiming to revamp the board and boost performance amid lagging results. Get the latest details URL: https://financedigest.com/billionaire-cohen-builds-stake-in-nordstrom-urges-board-shakeuphtml ![undefined](https://prod.superblogcdn.com/site_cuid_cm5qst7v3003gwirgwqtxn8i8/images/2023-02-03t015640z2lynxmpej1201urtroptp4nordstrom-cohen-1-1736814489420-compressed.jpg) By Svea Herbst-Bayliss NEW YORK (Reuters) -Billionaire investor Ryan Cohen is building a large stake in Nordstrom Inc and plans to push the upscale retailer to shake up its board as its performance has lagged behind rivals, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. Cohen, who built his fortune by co-founding online pet retailer Chewy Inc and cemented it with investments in videogame retailer GameStop and Apple Inc, would like to replace at least one director on Nordstrom’s 10-member board, the people said. He appears to be taking aim at Mark Tritton, who [chairs the compensation committee](https://www.financedigest.com/us-house-committee-chair-concerned-by-tesla-deals-in-china.html "US House committee chair ‘concerned’ by Tesla deals in China") and has served as a director since 2020. Cohen has privately called Tritton, a [former chief](https://www.financedigest.com/peter-warrack-former-director-of-aml-fintech-advisory-and-compliance-officer-at-the-bank-of-montreal-joins-bitfinex-as-chief-compliance-officer-cco.html "Peter Warrack, Former Director of AML (Fintech Advisory) and Compliance Officer at the Bank of Montreal, joins Bitfinex as Chief Compliance Officer (CCO)") executive of Bed Bath & Beyond, “conflicted and unqualified,” said the people, who were not permitted to discuss the private negotiations. Bed Bath & Beyond is preparing to file for bankruptcy, [Reuters reported](https://www.financedigest.com/indonesia-to-tighten-used-shoe-import-controls-after-reuters-report.html "Indonesia to tighten used shoe import controls after Reuters report") this week. [Investors cheered](https://www.financedigest.com/despite-the-headwinds-investors-have-important-reasons-to-be-cheerful.html "DESPITE THE HEADWINDS, INVESTORS HAVE IMPORTANT REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL") Cohen’s reported involvement at Nordstrom by sending the stock price up 25% in after-hours trading on Thursday. Nordstrom shares have dropped roughly 55% over the past five years, and ratings agency Fitch again downgraded the company last month, saying that its [“operating trajectory has been weaker than most retailers.”](https://www.financedigest.com/iveco-to-transfer-nordic-retail-and-commercial-operations-to-hedin.html "Iveco to transfer Nordic retail and commercial operations to Hedin") “While Cohen hasn’t sought any discussions with us in several years, we are open to hearing his views, as we do with all Nordstrom shareholders,” a company representative said. The [Wall Street](https://www.financedigest.com/weary-wall-street-cheers-improved-consumer-confidence.html "Weary Wall Street cheers improved consumer confidence") Journal first reported Cohen’s stake in Nordstrom. Cohen is now one of the company’s [top five non-insider shareholders alongside investment](https://www.financedigest.com/5-top-tips-in-investing-on-diamonds.html "5 Top tips in Investing on Diamonds") firms BlackRock and Fidelity, the people familiar with his stake said. Tritton was ousted as Bed Bath & Beyond’s [CEO as part of a management](https://www.financedigest.com/exclusive-crypto-giant-binance-moved-400-million-from-u-s-partner-to-firm-managed-by-ceo-zhao.html "Exclusive-Crypto giant Binance moved 0 million from U.S. partner to firm managed by CEO Zhao") shakeup in June just a few months after Cohen had taken a stake in the home goods retailer and criticized it for an “overly ambitious” strategy, for overpaying executives and failing to reverse market share losses. As possible replacements on the Nordstrom board, Cohen has identified executives with experience at [retail and e-commerce](https://www.financedigest.com/key-trends-disrupting-uk-e-commerce-retail-in-2022.html "Key trends disrupting UK e-commerce retail in 2022") companies, the people said. Cohen would like to [reach a deal](https://www.financedigest.com/analysis-g7-fails-to-reach-intervention-deal-to-ease-pain-of-soaring-dollar.html "Analysis-G7 fails to reach intervention deal to ease pain of soaring dollar") with the company without resorting to a proxy fight, the people said. The window to publicly nominate directors at Nordstrom closes on Feb. 17, according to proxy materials. Canada-born Cohen, 37, has a net [worth estimated at $2.5 billion](https://www.financedigest.com/why-a-quiet-revolution-in-the-cloud-is-worth-billions.html "Why A Quiet Revolution In The Cloud Is Worth Billions"). He made a splash in the [investing world two years ago when he joined the board](https://www.financedigest.com/plastic-antibody-developer-strengthens-board-following-further-investment-from-mercia-fund-management.html "“Plastic antibody” developer strengthens board following further investment from Mercia Fund Management") of GameStop, igniting a frenzy in the stock price that turned the video retailer into a “meme stock” backed by retail investors. Nordstrom was founded by the Nordstrom family, and insiders still own roughly 30% of the stock with brothers Erik and Peter serving as [chief executive officer](https://www.financedigest.com/iris-software-group-names-matt-tuson-as-chief-revenue-officer.html "IRIS Software Group names Matt Tuson as Chief Revenue Officer") and president, respectively. They also have board seats. Cohen has met with family members in Seattle, where the company is headquartered, and has expressed admiration for the [company’s customer service](https://www.financedigest.com/italys-eni-sets-up-sustainable-transport-services-company.html "Italy’s Eni sets up sustainable transport services company"), the people said. (Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss and Lavanya Ahire; Editing by Leslie Adler) --- This blog is powered by Superblog. Visit https://superblog.ai to know more. ---