Topshop (Photo : Reuters)

Luxury retailer Nordstrom Inc.is partnering with British clothiers Topshop and Topman to sell the brands' apparel online and in 14 of its department stores.

Nordstrom will be the biggest American retailer carrying a wide array of apparel and accessories from the British fast fashion retailer, which already has standalone stores open in New York, Chicago and Las Vegas. Topshop is the women's side of the brand, and Topman carries the men's merchandise.

The Seattle-based Nordstrom will launch Topshop and Topman boutiques in its own select department stores on Sept. 10 with some limited edition items. A fuller selection will be available for sale on Nordstrom's website.

California will have four locations, including South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, Valley Fair in San Jose. the Irvine Spectrum and San Francisco Centre (the first two stores will only carry Topshop apparel).

Both Topshop and Topman, whose rivals include fast fashion brands Zara and H&M, have slowly expanded in the U.S. The retailer is slated to open its fourth American store at the Grove shopping center in L.A.'s Fairfax district by the holiday season.

"I believe Topshop and Topman offer the Nordstrom customer something very different and unique with our signature British fashion authority," said Topshop owner Sir Phillip Green in a statement.

"Fast fashion implies cheap, and that's not what we're after," said Nordstrom. "It wasn't about how we sell a bunch of really cheap T-shirts. It's about how we deliver credible new fashion to the customer."

Kate Phelan, Topshop's creative director said that she expected Nordstrom shoppers to be more conservative, but that Topshop would still offer a wide range of styles. "We make them feel it's very easy to understand how to mix a combat jacket with a lace skirt," she said.

The merchandise will be delivered weekly, which, Green said, will bring customers into Nordstrom stores frequently.

"That speed is appealing," Nordstrom said.

Sales at the New York store rose 20 percent in the first six months of the year compared with sales a year earlier, he said.

Green said he expected the Nordstrom partnership would help him figure out what to carry at other American stores. "Obviously, there's places in America we've never been - we need an editor to give us a little bit of direction," he said.

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