Initiatives aimed at getting online shoppers into stores have begun paying off for footwear retailer DSW Inc.
During the third quarter, DSW rolled out buy online, pickup in store and buy online, ship to store options for customers with little fanfare. On DSW’s Q3 2015 earnings call, CEO Michael MacDonald told analysts the offerings were an immediate hit.
“With virtually no proactive marketing, this new program accounted for 1% of total sales in October,” he said, according to a transcript from Seeking Alpha. “The customer reaction was immediate and significant, which proves how much they want and frankly expect these additional capabilities.”
DSW does not break out online sales, however MacDonald told analysts that omnichannel sales accounted for 5% of the company’s overall year-to-date sales, or around $97.4 million.
The company will have a familiar face taking over as its new leader heading into next year.
Earlier this month, DSW, No. 133 in the Internet Retailer 2015 Top 500 Guide, announced that chief innovation officer Roger Rawlins will take over as CEO for the retiring MacDonald starting Jan. 1. Rawlins has been with DSW since 2006 and was promoted to head the company’s digital efforts in 2010. Top500Guide.com data shows that during that time, DSW has grown its online sales at a compound annual growth rate of 20.07%, going from an Internet Retailer-estimated to $249.6 million in 2014 from $100 million in 2010.
MacDonald praised Rawlins’ leadership of DSW’s e-commerce business.
“In 2010, I asked Roger to take over our fledgling DSW.com operation that was losing money. Within two years, he had that business contributing very meaningful sales and profitability,” he told analysts. “Time and again, Roger has demonstrated his ability to successfully manage challenging assignments with great success.”
For the third quarter ended Oct. 31, DSW reported:
- Total sales of $665.5 million, down slightly from $669.9 million during the same time last year.
- Comparable-store sales down 3.9% year-over-year, compared to a 2.6%.
- Net income of $39.3 million, down 20.8% from $49.6 million.
For the first nine months of 2015, DSW reported:
- Total sales of $1.948 billion, up 5.0% from $1.856 billion during the same time last year.
- Comparable-store sales down 0.9% year-over-year, compared to a 0.1% decrease.
- Net income of $124.3 million, up 1.5% from $122.5 million.