Columbus, Ohio — Designer Brands Inc. has named Laura Denk as president of DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse (DSW) and executive vice president of Designer Brands, with her appointment to be effective as of July 24, 2023. She joins DSW from Michaels Stores.
As president of DSW, Denk will be responsible for leading DSW’s nearly 500 U.S. store locations and e-commerce channel, DSW.com. Her responsibilities will include day-to-day leadership of DSW, in addition to helping to further elevate Designer Brands’ owned brands and top national brands within the retailer’s differentiated customer offering. Denk will report directly to Designer Brands’ chief executive officer, Doug Howe.
“I am confident in Laura’s ability to lead the DSW organization forward in ways that will further elevate and grow the profile of our owned brands, while ensuring we maintain our critical, core relationships with our top national brands within our retail footprint,” says Howe.
Denk brings to the company an extensive background in merchandising and an affinity for building strong vendor partnerships, along with significant experience in augmenting customer experiences and elevating private brands. She most recently served as chief merchandising officer and executive vice president at Michaels Stores, Inc. Prior to that, she was Michaels’ general merchandise manager. She has also held leadership positions at Claire’s Stores, Inc. and Macy’s, Inc.
Designer Brands is one of the world’s largest designers, producers and retailers of the most recognizable footwear brands and accessories. With a diversified, world-class portfolio of coveted brands, including Keds, Lucky Brand, Crown Vintage, Vince Camuto, Topo Athletic, Jessica Simpson, Le Tigre and others, Designer Brands designs and produces on-trend footwear and accessories through a robust direct-to-consumer omni-channel infrastructure and powerful national wholesale distribution. There are nearly 640 DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse and The Shoe Company stores in North America. For more information, visit www.designerbrands.com.
SOURCE: Designer Brands Inc.