Gift cards keep giving at Nordstrom

Leading department store retailer Nordstrom has developed a unique approach to community giving by returning 1% of gift card sales to local nonprofit groups.

Nordstrom will use funds from gift card sales to support two giving programs: Nordstrom-directed corporate contributions and a newly-launched Employee Charitable Match program. For more than 40 years, Nordstrom selects hundreds of organizations to receive cash grants.

Though the company supports a variety of programs and organizations, it primarily focuses its giving on efforts aimed at taking care of kids and empowering youth. Funds from the Nordstrom Gift Card program will also support the company's new Employee Charitable Match program. Launching in summer 2015, the program will provide employees who have been at the company for one year with $5,000 annually to match their personal donations to qualified non-profit organizations.

"As a company we've focused on giving back to the communities that support us, so we're really excited that through this new gift card giving program, we have an even bigger opportunity to do more," said Jamie Nordstrom, president of stores for Nordstrom, Inc. "When a customer buys a gift card this Mother's Day and beyond, we hope they'll feel good knowing that the gift they're giving is a part of Nordstrom helping some great non-profit organizations do amazing things for their communities. Giving back to the communities we serve has long been a tradition for us here at Nordstrom. Tying our company's commitment to giving back to our gift cards is a great way for us to further demonstrate to our customers, our employees and those who receive a Nordstrom Gift Card that we are a company that is invested in the long term health of our communities.”

The Seattle-based company operates 299 stores in 38 states consisting of 116 Nordstrom locations and 173 Nordstrom Rack locations.