President Donald Trump has told the world he isn’t pleased with Nordstrom.
The luxury retailer was the latest company to draw the ire of Trump, as Nordstrom officially announced last week it would stop selling items from his daughter Ivanka Trump’s line because the brand wasn’t performing strongly. The move to pull Ivanka’s products from shelves and the online retail website came after boycotts—which have targeted retailers that sell Trump-branded apparel and accessories—by some shoppers who don’t support President Trump’s policies. Shannon Coulter, a digital strategist, led that movement after starting the #grabyourwallet hashtag last year.
Here’s the tweet that President Trump sent on Twitter (TWTR) this morning, defending his daughter while also lamenting Nordstrom’s decision.
My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by @Nordstrom. She is a great person — always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 8, 2017
A Nordstrom spokeswoman wasn’t immediately available to comment on Trump’s statement.
His daughter Ivanka has seen her brand targeted by boycotts even though she has no formal role in the White House. But as Trump’s own tweet points out by saying she is “always pushing me to do the right thing”—clearly Ivanka has some influence.
Nordstrom initially stood behind selling the brand last year, essentially arguing it wanted to stay out of the fray.
“We’ve heard from customers, including some who are long time loyal customers, threatening a boycott of Nordstrom if we continue to carry the line,” Nordstrom said in November. “Similarly, we’ve heard from customers who say they will boycott Nordstrom if we stop carrying the brand. This is a sharply divisive subject. No matter what we do, we are going to end up disappointing some of our customers.”
That’s the problem that all retailers and apparel brands face in this politically charged climate: the risk to anger either side of the aisle. Nordstrom’s statement last week strongly pointed to lagging sales, rather than taking a political position. Meanwhile, other retailers are still facing the heat. Macy’s (M) has been called on to drop Ivanka’s fashion brand. And on Tuesday, Under Armour (UAA) angered some on social media when the company’s CEO Kevin Plank praised President Trump.
