Olivia Kim, the former Opening Ceremony executive who joined Nordstrom in February 2013, has been promoted to vice president of creative projects in recognition of the innovations she’s brought to the retailer’s fashion business.
“We’ve just kind of turned her loose and told her why don’t you just go for it and buy what’s cool,” Pete Nordstrom, copresident of Nordstrom Inc., told WWD.
Kim’s former title at Nordstrom was creative projects director, a position created for her when she came on board. Her work focuses on orchestrating curated partnerships, the Pop-In@Nordstrom series of pop-up shops and a new in-store boutique called Space. She covers a slice of the fashion market that as Nordstrom said, “sometimes falls between the cracks for us in our typical process.”
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In October 2013, Kim launched Pop-In@Nordstrom, which rotates its merchandise every four to six weeks to introduce a fashion trend or theme or a particular brand or vendor. Pop-In@Nordstrom partnerships have included Nike, Topshop/Topman, Warby Parker, Converse, Poketo, Liberty London, Rag & Bone, Dylan’s Candy Bar and the U.S. debut of Hong Kong fashion collective I.T. Pop-Ins are in seven Nordstrom locations including the four flagships which are in Vancouver, Chicago, Seattle and San Francisco.
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Nordstrom’s Space shop primarily focuses on emerging designers. Space shops, seen in the four Nordstrom flagships and online, house such labels as Simone Rocha, Shrimps, Acne, Aries, Vetements, Anthony Vaccarello, Roksanda, Paskal, Creatures of the Wind, Rosetta Getty and Undercover. The concept, launched last month, covers apparel, shoes, handbags and accessories collections.
Asked if Kim has a third creative concept up her sleeve, Nordstrom said, “Not right now, but she’s got a lot of ideas and we’ve got a willingness to listen.” She could make her mark on Nordstrom’s New York City flagship, seen opening in 2018. “It provides the best opportunity to do her thing,” said Nordstrom. “She’s got great taste and an interesting point of view.”
Before joining Nordstrom, Kim was a founding member and vice president of creative at Opening Ceremony. She had a range of responsibilities there, from merchandising and store planning to art direction and collaborative projects. She also played a role in launching emerging designers such as CFDA-nominated brands Suno, Pamela Love and Patrik Ervell.