Seattle-based retail chain Nordstrom Inc. announced Tuesday plans to open its third fulfillment center, this one in Elizabethtown, PA.  Nordstrom, No. 28 in Internet Retailer’s 2103 Top 500 Guide, will build the 672,000-square-foot warehouse in the Conewago Industrial Park.  Construction began on Monday with the opening set for summer 2015. 

Nordstrom uses an integrated inventory platform that allows orders to be fulfilled both by stores and fulfillment centers.  The Pennsylvania center will handle orders placed through Nordstrom.com, the Nordstrom mobile app and the chain’s catalog, and will help to speed shipments to consumers on on the East Coast, Nordstrom says.

The retailer already operates fulfillment centers in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and San Bernadino, CA.  Nordstrom says the new fulfillment center will employ at least 400 full-time workers, the chain says. 

“E-commerce is the fastest-growing area of our business and this is another example of how we’re investing in people and capabilities to help us support this growth and responding to our customers’ changing definition of service,” says Jamie Nordstrom, president of Nordstrom Direct.

Nordstrom, which also owns fashion site HauteLook.com, took in $1.3 billion in web sales in 2012, up 42.39% from 2011, according to Top500Guide.com. The department store chain fulfills orders from its two existing warehouses and 117 retail locations.  Nordstrom serves customers in 98 countries and offers free shipping and returns within the United States.