Nordstrom Bans Black Luxury CEO From Stores, Warns of Police Action After Racial Profiling Claim

Charles Sowell Kellam, the Black luxury brand CEO who accused Nordstrom of racially profiling and humiliating him during a visit to its Scottsdale, Arizona, store, says the retailer has now barred him from entering any of its locations nationwide.

In an Oct. 21 letter obtained by Atlanta Black Star, Nordstrom’s outside counsel told Kellam’s attorneys that the company still bars Kellam from entering or remaining inside any Nordstrom store or eBar. The letter warns that any future visit could result in trespassing allegations and legal action, including police involvement.

The development follows Kellam’s March 21 confrontation with a store manager at Scottsdale Fashion Square. Kellam has maintained that the incident involved racial profiling and said the experience left him feeling watched and humiliated.

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Kellam said he sat at the store’s eBar with Ruby, his trained German Shepherd service animal, while preparing for an upcoming contract meeting. That’s when a store manager approached him about the dog and told him he was not welcome back.

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He said the confrontation escalated when the manager used her phone and walkie-talkie to contact security. Mall security eventually intervened as the encounter moved into the concourse, drawing a crowd of shoppers who recorded the incident. Kellam said the public confrontation took a psychological toll on him.

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Nordstrom’s letter presents a different account of the original dispute, accusing Kellam of repeatedly bringing his dog into the store and eBar without a leash despite warnings from employees. The company alleges that he verbally berated the store manager during the March incident, recorded her without permission, and posted a video that disclosed her full name and job title.

According to the letter, the store manager asked Kellam to leash his dog on March 21, and he responded by allegedly “screaming profanities and insults at her.” {snip}

The company says it received complaints from customers who alleged that Kellam verbally berated them after they asked him to leash his dog around small children. {snip}

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