Shoe Carnival Backs Off Transition to Shoe Station

Not that long ago, it looked like Shoe Carnival (Fort Mill, S.C.) was going to convert most of its stores to locations of the Shoe Station, which acquired in 2021 and at that time had just 21 locales. Not anymore.

After closely monitoring the performances of the stores it did change to Shoe Station, Store Carnival has decided that the two brands draw decidedly different clientele and that it is scaling back its plans to convert as many of its stores to the chain it bought.

All this came out in the retailer’s financial report on it most recent quarter ended May 2. For that period, sales at Shoe Carnival stores declined by 2.2% from a year earlier, while those at Shoe Station fell 3.1%.

Those results are also the first the company has reported since Cliff Sifford was brought back to the retailer as Interim President and CEO in February.  (Sifford served as Shoe Carnival’s CEO from 2012 to 2021 and was rehired after the abrupt departure of his successor, Mark Worden.)

“Since returning … I have worked with our board and management team to complete a comprehensive review of the company’s strategic direction and capital deployment,” said Sifford. “Our review confirmed that the Shoe Carnival and Shoe Station banners each serve distinct consumer segments, and that the company is best positioned to operate both banners as permanent, independent components of our portfolio.”

Sifford also said the retailer “feel confident about growth opportunities for the Shoe Station banner – both through new store growth in markets that serve the target consumer segment and rebannering of select Shoe Carnival locations that meet the criteria for conversion to Shoe Station.”

According to its last annual earnings report in November, Shoe Carnival had converted about 100 locales to Shoe Stations and was planning to convert roughly the same number by the start of the school year late this summer. Overall, the company has 426 stores in 35 states and Puerto Rico operating under its two banners.

(Not known at this time is the fate of the company’s intention to rename itself Shoe Station. That move, announced last November, was to be decided by shareholders, with the outcome disclosed at the company’s annual meeting on June 10.)