Seattle based fashion retailer, Nordstrom, announced on March 8 plans to expand its presence in Chicago and open a Nordstrom Rack at The Maxwell, March 8. The massive 36,500-square-foot store is likely to throw its doors open in 2014.

Nordstrom Rack is the off-price retail division of the company and carries trendy merchandise from its stores and Nordstrom.com at a discount of about 50 to 60 percent. It features a wide range of apparels, accessories and shoes from various other brands carried in Nordstrom stores.

"We could not be more delighted to have Nordstrom Rack as a lead anchor in The Maxwell. This store reinforces the confidence they have demonstrated in the Chicago marketplace,” noted Robert J. Bond, president of the Bond Companies, developer of The Maxwell. “Nordstrom Rack is a leader in its peer group and a best in class retailer. The Rack is a great addition to the South Loop as this area continues to evolve as a prominent retail corridor serving more than 15 Chicago neighborhoods.”

Nordstrom first ventured into the Windy City in 1991 with the opening of its Oakbrook Center store. Since then the retailer has expanded in leaps and bounds and now operates four full-line stores and seven Rack stores in the area.

“We're excited to have the opportunity to further grow our downtown Chicago presence with our new location at The Maxwell," said Geevy Thomas, president of Nordstrom Rack . "We're grateful for the tremendous response we've had from our Chicago area customers ever since we arrived here. We want to be a part of compelling locations across the country and are looking forward to getting our doors open so that we can help more customers in the South Loop neighborhood."

Nordstrom started off as a shoe store but it currently has a collection of clothing, shoes, fragrances and accessories like wallets, handbags and sunglasses for men, women and children.