Designer Brands sales growth driven by US retail in Q3

By

Robin Driver

Published
Dec 7, 2021

Designer Brands Inc., the Columbus, Ohio-based owner of the DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse, The Shoe Company and Shoe Warehouse retail chains, announced a year-over-year increase of 30.7% in its net sales for the third quarter on Tuesday, with growth led by progress in the company’s U.S.-based retail operations.

 
In the third quarter ended October 30, 2021, the company, which also produces footwear and accessories through Camuto Group, achieved net sales of $853.5 million, compared to $652.9 million in the same period in the previous year. Comparable sales rose 40.8%.
 
Sales in Designer Brands’ U.S. retail segment rose 41.4% year over year to $709.6 million, while its Canada retail segment experienced growth of 21.4%, posting quarterly sales of $74.8 million. The company’s brand portfolio segment saw a 23.9% rise in its sales, which totaled $103.9 million.

Quarterly net income at the company was $80.2 million, or $1.04 per diluted share, compared to a loss of $40.6 million, or $0.56 per diluted share, in the prior-year period.
 
“Designer Brands’ outstanding third quarter results demonstrate the efficacy of our strategic plans that were set in motion prior to the onset of the pandemic and accelerated over the last 18 months,” commented Designer Brands CEO Roger Rawlins in a release.
 
“We continue to see strength in our key assortment distortion areas including athletic and athleisure, kid's, and men's, all powered by the Top 50 Brands in footwear, as well as a return to growth in our vertical brands,” added the executive.
 
Year to date, Designer Brands reported net sales of $2.4 billion, an increase of 46.1% compared to $1.7 billion in the same nine months in the previous year. Net income in the period was $140.1 million, or $1.81 per diluted share, compared to a loss of $354.7 million, or $4.92 per diluted share, a year earlier.
 
The company currently expects its fourth-quarter net sales to be flat to up low-single digits compared to Q4 2020, while diluted earnings per share for the period are predicted to be in the range of $0.10 to $0.15.
 
Designer Brands opened five new stores and closed four over the course of the third quarter, meaning that, as of October 30, it operates 515 locations in the U.S. and 144 in Canada.