Nordstrom (JWN  ) was able to rise above the challenging retail market, attracting shoppers for both full-priced and discounted merchandise. Nordstrom reported that same-store sales rose 4% in the latest quarter, which exceeded analyst expectations and sent shares up as much as 15%. Consumers were drawn to both the company's in-store products (full-price and off-price), with loyalty program members comprising a larger percentage of sales. The company's stock has climbed about 10% since the start of the year, outpacing the gain in the S&P 500 Index. Nordstrom also wanted to go private back in March, but failed to agree on a buyout price.

Nordstrom's tactic seems to be working. They have been increasing sales at their discount-focused Rack chain in order to avoid putting full-price stores on sale. Nordstrom now focuses on their e-commerce sites and on having inventory-free stores. The e-commerce store alone experienced 23% in sales growth. In total, Nordstrom reported that gross profit margins increased to 35%, 91 basis points higher than a year earlier; however, attributing 7.1% of those to revenue gain in the period to an anniversary sale, which is expected to fully reverse in the third quarter. Nordstrom said that sales of beauty products were "extremely strong" in particular.

Competitor Macy's (M  ), by contrast, has not been doing so well. Although the company raised its earnings and revenue guidance for the year, an increase in spending caused shares to go down 16%. J.C. Penney's (JCP  ) stock also went down 27% after prediction for an annual loss. Outside of department store chains and across the wider retail market, Walmart (WMT  ) and Home Depot (HD  ) have been doing quite well. Walmart stated that its quarterly sales rose at the fastest rate in over a decade and Home Depot reported the strongest paint sales in five years. Walmart often tracks the US as it gets more than half of its revenue from groceries and staples with GDP increasing 4.1% in the second quarter. Walmart also booked $128 billion in global quarterly revenue and posted a 40% jump in e-commerce sales.

This is not to say that traditional retailers are not facing challenges: e-commerce giant Amazon (AMZN  ) continues to dominate. US store closures are still outpacing openings by nearly two to one. Retailers are focusing on their core customers, both through physical stores and websites and have become much smarter about managing their inventory, leaving fewer surplice goods and mark downs at the end of a season. Approximately 4,379 US stores have closed since the beginning of 2018 and several retailers have filed for bankruptcy this year, including Toys 'R' Us and Bon-Ton Stores Inc.