40 new stores for DSW in 2015
US-based footwear retailer DSW opened 40 stores in the US during 2015 and expanded its presence in Canada with the opening of 11 DSW locations by Town Shoes.
Digital demand grew 22% and sales increased 5% to $2.6 billion.
CEO Roger Rawlins said: "During the fourth quarter, we acted quickly to drive sales and gain market share, in the face of a challenging retail environment. While these actions negatively impacted operating margin in the near term, we believe they were the right steps to expand our customer base and exit the year with a clean inventory position. In 2016, we will move decisively to improve our execution, intensify our focus on delivering value to our customers and drive additional growth by entering new categories, markets and digital channels."
DSW this month completed the acquisition of Ebuys, a online shoe retailer operating in in North America, Europe, Australia and Asia.
For the year ending January 28, 2017, the company expects revenue growth of between 8% and 10%, and aims to open 34 stores and close two stores to total almost 500 stores.
