COLUMBUS, Ohio, May 20, 2022
/PRNewswire/ -- Designer Brands Inc. (NYSE: DBI), one of North
America's largest designers, producers and retailers of
footwear and accessories, today announced that Doug Howe has been named President of DSW
Designer Shoe Warehouse and Executive Vice President of Designer
Brands.
Howe's appointment brings continued strength and momentum to
Designer Brands putting customers, brands and speed at the
forefront of the retailer's 519 U.S. store locations and
direct-to-consumer channels. As President of DSW, Doug will be
responsible for day-to-day leadership of the company and bringing
DSW's differentiated customer experience and desired brands to life
across direct-to-consumer channels. Doug will report directly to
Designer Brands' CEO Roger Rawlins,
and his appointment is effective in late May.
Howe is a 30+ year retail veteran with deep experience in
vertical and national brand building and direct-to-consumer growth.
He most recently served as Chief Merchandising Officer at Kohl's,
and held prior leadership positions across merchandising, design,
product development and planning at Qurate Retail Group, Old Navy,
Walmart and May Department Stores. Howe is a graduate of
Creighton University with a degree in
business administration and management.
"I'm privileged to join DSW as we evolve retail to the next
level, with a determined focus on customers, offering the best
owned and national brands and delivering products with incredible
speed," said Howe. "DSW is more than just a place to buy shoes,
it's an innovative enterprise on multiple fronts. With so much
synergy fueling DSW's business plans, I'm excited to partner with
all DSW associates to continue the momentum and growth for the
future."
"Designer Brands and DSW are hyper-focused on maintaining our
edge across the competitive landscape," added Rawlins. "I have the
highest confidence in Doug's leadership to guide us in our stores
and ecommerce operations to benefit our owned brands, while
focusing on the athletic and fashion brands that our 28 million
loyalty customers love. DSW has a bright future ahead with Doug's
proven retail experience helping advance our business priorities of
customers, brands and speed."
About Designer Brands
Designer Brands is one of
North America's largest designers,
producers, and retailers of footwear and accessories. Designer
Brands operates a portfolio of retail concepts in nearly 700
locations under the DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse®, The Shoe
Company®, and Shoe Warehouse® banners. Designer Brands designs and
produces footwear and accessories through Camuto Group, a leading
manufacturer selling in more than 5,400 stores worldwide. Camuto
Group owns licensing rights for the Jessica Simpson® footwear
business and footwear and handbag licenses for Lucky Brand®. In
partnership with a joint venture with Authentic Brands Group,
Designer Brands also owns a stake in Vince Camuto®, Louise et Cie®,
and others. More information can be found at
www.designerbrands.com.
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995
Certain statements in this press
release may constitute forward-looking statements and are made
pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify these
forward-looking statements by the use of forward-looking words such
as "outlook," "could," "believes," "expects," "potential," "may,"
"will," "should," "would," "approximately," "plans," "estimates,"
"anticipates," "targets" or the negative version of those words or
other comparable words. These statements are based on the Company's
current views and expectations and involve known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results,
performance or achievements to be materially different from any
future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by
the forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not
limited to: risks and uncertainty related to the ongoing
coronavirus ("COVID-19") pandemic, any future COVID-19
resurgence, and any other adverse public health developments;
uncertain general economic conditions, including inflation and
supply chain pressures, domestic and global political and social
conditions and the potential impact of geopolitical turmoil or
conflict, including the war in Ukraine, and the related impacts to consumer
discretionary spending or other adverse macroeconomic
factors; our ability to anticipate and respond to fashion
trends, consumer preferences and changing customer expectations;
maintaining strong relationships with our vendors, manufacturers,
licensors, and retailer customers; risks related to losses or
disruptions associated with our distribution systems, including our
distribution centers and fulfillment center and stores, whether as
a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, reliance on third-party
providers, or otherwise; our reliance on our loyalty programs and
marketing to drive traffic, sales and customer loyalty; failure to
retain our key executives or attract qualified new personnel; risks
related to the loss or disruption of our information systems and
data and our ability to prevent or mitigate breaches of our
information security and the compromise of sensitive and
confidential data; our ability to protect our reputation and to
maintain the brands we license; risks related to restrictions
imposed by our credit facility that could limit our ability to fund
operations; our competitiveness with respect to style, price, brand
availability and customer service; our ability to provide customers
with cost-effective shopping platforms; risks related to our
international operations, including international trade, our
reliance on foreign sources for merchandise, exposure to political,
economic, operational, compliance and other risks, and fluctuations
in foreign currency exchange rates; our ability to protect the
health and safety of our associates and our customers, which may be
affected by current or future government regulations related to
stay-at-home orders and/or orders related to the operation of
non-essential businesses; our ability to comply with privacy laws
and regulations, as well as other legal obligations; and
uncertainty related to future legislation, regulatory reform,
policy changes, or interpretive guidance on existing legislation.
Risks and other factors that could cause our actual results to
differ materially from our forward-looking statements are described
in the Company's latest Annual Report on Form 10-K or other reports
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All
forward-looking statements speak only as of the time when made. The
Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise the
forward-looking statements included in this press release to
reflect any future events or circumstances.
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SOURCE Designer Brands Inc.