Caleres, Inc.

Overview

Caleres, Inc., founded in 1878 (originally Brown Shoe Company) and incorporated in 1913, is a global footwear company that designs, develops, sources, manufactures and distributes footwear for women, men and children. The company operates retail stores and e-commerce sites and reports results in two segments: Famous Footwear and Brand Portfolio.

Reportable segments

• Famous Footwear
• Brand Portfolio

Famous Footwear

• Retail footprint: 821 Famous Footwear stores at the end of 2025.
• E-commerce: famousfootwear.com and famousfootwear.ca.
• Omni-channel: online product availability with in-store pickup options (Famously Fast Pickup, curbside); about two-thirds of e-commerce orders not picked up in-store are fulfilled from store inventories.
• Product mix: mass-market to mid-brand footwear for the entire family. The segment uses marketing and the Famously You Rewards loyalty program to drive traffic.
• Internal sourcing: Company-owned and licensed brand products supplied to Famous Footwear by the Brand Portfolio segment (approximately 5% of Famous Footwear net sales).

Brand Portfolio

• Channels: wholesale and direct-to-consumer. Designs, develops, sources, manufactures, markets and distributes branded, licensed and private-label footwear; includes company-owned brand stores and e-commerce.
• Owned brand stores: 188 total as of the end of 2025
  • Allen Edmonds: 58 (U.S.)
  • Sam Edelman: 56
  • Stuart Weitzman: 73 (global; includes 23 North America locations and 50 locations in China)
  • Naturalizer: 1
• Third-party international presence: 148 branded stores operated by franchisees/distributors.
• Direct-to-consumer: 15 brand e-commerce websites.
• Brand mix: Sam Edelman, Vionic, Naturalizer, Allen Edmonds, Dr. Scholl’s Shoes, Stuart Weitzman, LifeStride, Franco Sarto, Rykä, Blowfish Malibu, Vince, Veronica Beard, plus various license arrangements.
• Key wholesale customers: Amazon, Nordstrom, Zappos; Nordstrom Rack, DSW, TJX (TJ Maxx, Marshalls); Macy’s, Dillard’s; Walmart; QVC Group (QVC and HSN), among others.
• Wholesale volume: Brand Portfolio sold approximately 32 million pairs of shoes on a wholesale basis in 2025.
• Licensing: license revenue represented about 14% of Brand Portfolio sales in 2024 and 2025 (13% in 2023). The company also collects license revenue from third parties related to owned brands.
• Market reach: Brand Portfolio products are sold to about 1,900 retailers in the U.S., Canada and roughly 63 other countries (including sales to the company’s own retail operations).

Direct-to-consumer and online presence

• 15 brand-owned e-commerce sites in Brand Portfolio.
• Company-owned stores for several brands alongside licensed and franchise partners.

Store footprint and real estate

• Total retail footprint: 1,009 retail stores across Famous Footwear and Brand Portfolio (reporting period).
• Store locations: strip centers, outlet centers and regional malls across the U.S., Canada, East/Southeast Asia and Guam. The Perth, Ontario outlet center is listed separately in the properties section.
• 2026 guidance: planned openings of approximately 15 retail stores and planned closures of approximately 25 stores (subject to market conditions).

Backlog and orders

• Brand Portfolio wholesale backlog: approximately $332.2 million as of January 31, 2026 (vs. $260.2 million as of February 1, 2025).
• Backlog represents unfilled wholesale orders, with most deliveries expected within 90 to 120 days. Orders can be canceled, and historical cancellation levels have been low.

Customers and concentration

• Brand Portfolio serves about 1,900 retailers across online channels, national chains, department stores, independent retailers and mass merchandisers.
• Major customers include Amazon, Nordstrom, Zappos, Nordstrom Rack, DSW, TJX, Kohl’s, Ross Stores, Macy’s, Dillard’s, Walmart and QVC Group (QVC and HSN).

Supply chain and manufacturing

• Sourcing footprint (2025): approximately 49 independent manufacturers across about 107 facilities.
• Country sourcing mix (2025): Vietnam $284.7 million; China $88.4 million; Cambodia $45.3 million; India $11.0 million; Other $21.6 million; Total sourcing $451.0 million.
• North American manufacturing: company-operated facilities in Port Washington, Wisconsin and Santiago, Dominican Republic (primarily for Allen Edmonds), supporting quality control and recrafting services to extend product life.
• Recrafting: Port Washington facilities support recrafting of Allen Edmonds footwear (recraftable up to twice for most styles, some up to three times).
• Risk factors: tariffs, currency fluctuations, logistics, capacity constraints and geopolitical tensions affect international sourcing.

Product mix and operations

• Category net sales mix (2025, 2024, 2023): Women’s footwear ~61% (2025 and 2023), 60% (2024); Men’s footwear 21%; Children’s footwear 12%; Clothing and accessories 6–7%.
• Product strategy: "Edit to Win" SKU optimization and speed to market to align assortments with demand.
• Design and product development: regional teams and a sample-making facility in Dongguan, China; product development locations include Clayton (MO), Dongguan (China), Elda (Spain), Putian (China), New York (NY), Novato (CA), Port Washington (WI), and fashion-oriented development in Milan and Florence (Italy).

Marketing and consumer engagement

• Marketing investments (2025): Famous Footwear ~$58.2 million; Brand Portfolio ~$93 million.
• Loyalty and data: Famously You Rewards integrated with digital marketing and analytics to drive customer engagement.

Workforce

• As of January 31, 2026: approximately 10,000 employees (about 5,000 full-time and 5,000 part-time).
• Labor relations: no U.S. unionized employees; in Canada, approximately 22 warehouse employees are under a union contract (expires October 2028).

Debt and liquidity

• Credit facility: revolving credit agreement up to $700 million, with incremental capacity up to $250 million at Caleres’ option.
• Available borrowing capacity: $207.7 million as of January 31, 2026.
• Interest: variable pricing based on SOFR or prime rate plus a spread.

Intellectual property and licensing

• The company relies on trademarks and licensed arrangements to grow and protect its brands. Licenses can be exclusive or non-exclusive and include minimum royalty requirements and renewal conditions tied to performance.

Key metrics (highlights)

• Stores: Famous Footwear 821; Brand Portfolio owned stores 188; total company stores 1,009.
• Employees: ~10,000.
• Wholesale volume: ~32 million pairs (2025).
• Backlog: $332.2 million (Jan 31, 2026).
• International exposure: ~7% of total net sales outside the U.S. as of Jan 31, 2026; 148 third-party branded stores internationally.
• Brand reach: 15 owned e-commerce sites; major brands include Sam Edelman, Vionic, Naturalizer, Allen Edmonds, Stuart Weitzman, Dr. Scholl’s Shoes, LifeStride, Franco Sarto, Rykä, Blowfish Malibu, Vince, Veronica Beard.
• Sourcing spend (2025): Vietnam $284.7m; China $88.4m; Cambodia $45.3m; India $11.0m; Other $21.6m; Total $451.0m.
• Marketing spend (2025): Famous Footwear $58.2m; Brand Portfolio $93.0m.

Strategy summary Caleres operates a multi-brand, multi-channel model that integrates design, sourcing, speed to market and marketing to support growth across retail and wholesale channels under a "One Caleres" approach.