Designer Brands Inc. Reports Third Quarter 2022 Financial Results

Comparable sales up 3.0% on top of comparable sales of 40.8% for the third quarter of 2021

Net sales from our Owned Brands increased 25.0% over the same period last year

In November 2022, received $120.3 million in tax refund reducing debt and increasing liquidity

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Dec. 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Designer Brands Inc. (NYSE: DBI) (the "Company" and "Designer Brands"), one of the world's largest designers, producers, and retailers of footwear and accessories, announced financial results for the three months ended October 29, 2022.

Roger Rawlins, Chief Executive Officer, stated, "We continued to make meaningful progress on our long-term brand building strategy while also delivering solid comparable sales across every segment of our business. Sales of Owned Brands represented 26.5% of total net sales in the third quarter of 2022 compared to 21.5% for the same period last year. The strategic shifts we have made in our business over the past several years are driving a sustainably higher gross margin rate than 2019 as we have a more targeted focus on customer acquisition, optimizing our assortment, and growing the brands we own and control.

"While we are seeing many of the same pressures across the consumer landscape that most retailers are seeing, our flexible business model continues to support our efforts to navigate a dynamic macro environment. We are focused on meeting our customers' footwear needs while we balance inventory and expenses in order to continue growing market share in this volatile environment."

Third Quarter Operating Results (all comparisons are to the third quarter of 2021)

• Net sales increased 1.4% to $865.0 million.
• Comparable sales increased 3.0%.
• Gross profit decreased to $285.8 million versus $313.6 million last year, and gross margin as a percentage of net sales was 33.0% as compared to 36.7% last year.
• Reported net income was $45.2 million, or diluted earnings per share ("EPS") of $0.65.
• Adjusted net income was $46.1 million, or adjusted diluted EPS of $0.67.

Liquidity Highlights

• Cash and cash equivalents totaled $62.5 million at the end of the third quarter of 2022 compared to $83.1 million at the end of the same period last year, with $130.9 million remaining available for borrowings under our senior secured asset-based revolving credit facility. Debt totaled $415.5 million at the end of the third quarter of 2022 compared to $227.9 million at the end of the same period last year. In November 2022, we received $120.3 million of our income tax receivable from the Internal Revenue Service as a result of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act. We anticipate receiving the remaining income tax receivable within the next twelve months.
• The Company ended the quarter with more normalized inventory levels of $681.8 million compared to $602.1 million at the same period last year with accelerated receipts to support fall season demand.

Return to Shareholders

• During the third quarter of 2022, Designer Brands repurchased 1.3 million Class A common shares (2.0% of Class A and Class B common shares at the beginning of the quarter) at an aggregate cost of $19.1 million under its share repurchase program.
• During the nine months ended October 29, 2022, we repurchased 10.7 million Class A common shares (14.6% of Class A and Class B common shares at the beginning of the fiscal year) at an aggregate cost of $147.5 million, with $187.4 million of Class A common shares that remain authorized under the program as of October 29, 2022.
• A dividend of $0.05 per share of Class A and Class B common shares will be paid on December 28, 2022 to shareholders of record at the close of business on December 13, 2022.

Store Openings and Closings

During the third quarter of 2022, we opened 1 new store and closed 3 stores in the U.S. with no changes to the store count in Canada, resulting in a total of 504 U.S. stores and 138 Canadian stores as of October 29, 2022.

Updated 2022 Financial Outlook

The Company is updating the following guidance for the full year 2022:

Webcast and Conference Call

The Company is hosting a conference call today at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. Investors and analysts interested in participating in the call are invited to dial 1-888-317-6003, or the international dial-in, 1-412-317-6061, and reference conference ID number 8112374 approximately ten minutes prior to the start of the conference call. The conference call will also be broadcast live over the internet and can be accessed through the following link:

https://app.webinar.net/95ZvEx7rpAl

For those unable to listen to the live webcast, an archived version will be available via the same website address until December 15,2022. A replay of the teleconference will be available by dialing the following numbers:

U.S.: 1-877-344-7529
Canada: 1-855-669-9658
International: 1-412-317-0088
Passcode: 5000482

About Designer Brands

Designer Brands is one of the world's largest designers, producers and retailers of the most recognizable footwear brands and accessories, transforming and defining the footwear industry by inspiring self-expression across every facet of its enterprise. Through its portfolio of world-class owned brands, led by the industry-setting Vince Camuto brand, Designer Brands delivers on-trend footwear and accessories through its robust direct-to-consumer omni-channel infrastructure, featuring a billion-dollar digital commerce business and nearly 650 stores across the U.S. and Canada. Its retailing operations under the DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse and The Shoe Company banners deliver current, in-line footwear and accessories from most of the largest national brands in the industry and hold leading market share positions in key product categories across Women's, Men's and Kid's in the U.S. and Canada. Designer Brands also distributes its owned brands through select wholesale relationships while leveraging its design and sourcing expertise to build private label product for national retailers. Designer Brands is also committed to being a difference maker in the world, taking steps forward to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in the footwear industry and supporting our global community and the health of our planet through donating more than six million pairs of shoes to the global non-profit Soles4Souls. More information can be found at www.designerbrands.com.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995

Certain statements in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify these forward-looking statements by the use of forward-looking words such as "outlook," "could," "believes," "expects," "potential," "continues," "may," "will," "should," "would," "seeks," "approximately," "predicts," "intends," "plans," "estimates," "anticipates," or the negative version of those words or other comparable words. These statements are based on the Company's current views and expectations and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to: risks and uncertainties related to the ongoing coronavirus ("COVID-19") pandemic, any future COVID-19 resurgence, and any other adverse public health developments; risks that recent inflationary pressures, including higher freight costs, could have on our results of operations and customer demand based on pricing actions and operating measures taken to mitigate the impact of inflation; uncertain general economic conditions, including inflation and supply chain pressures, domestic and global political and social conditions and the potential impact of geopolitical turmoil or conflict, and the related impacts to consumer discretionary spending; our ability to execute on our long-term strategic plans; our ability to anticipate and respond to fashion trends, consumer preferences, and changing customer expectations; our ability to maintain strong relationships with our vendors, manufacturers, licensors, and retailer customers; risks related to losses or disruptions associated with our distribution systems, including our distribution centers and fulfillment center and stores, whether as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, reliance on third-party providers, or otherwise; our reliance on our loyalty programs and marketing to drive traffic, sales, and customer loyalty; risks related to cyber security threats and privacy or data security breaches or the potential loss or disruption of our information systems; our ability to protect our reputation and to maintain the brands we license; our competitiveness with respect to style, price, brand availability, and customer service; risks related to our international operations, including international trade, our reliance on foreign sources for merchandise, exposure to political, economic, operational, and compliance and other risks, and fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; our ability to comply with privacy laws and regulations, as well as other legal obligations; risks associated with climate change and other corporate responsibility issues; and uncertainties related to future legislation, regulatory reform, policy changes, or interpretive guidance on existing legislation. Risks and other factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from our forward-looking statements are described in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 29, 2022 and in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the time when made. Except as may be required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements included in this press release to reflect any future events or circumstances.

Non-GAAP Measures

To supplement amounts presented in our unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements determined in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States ("GAAP"), the Company uses certain non-GAAP financial measures, including adjusted operating expenses, adjusted operating profit, adjusted net income, and adjusted diluted earnings per share as shown in the table above. These measures adjust for the effects of: (1) restructuring and termination costs; (2) target acquisition costs (credits); (3) impairment charges; (4) loss on extinguishment of debt and write-off of debt issuance costs; (5) foreign currency transaction losses (gains); (6) the net tax effect of such items; and (7) the change in the valuation allowance on deferred tax assets. The unaudited reconciliation of adjusted results should not be construed as an alternative to the reported results determined in accordance with GAAP. These financial measures are not based on any standardized methodology and are not necessarily comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. The Company believes these non-GAAP measures provide useful information to both management and investors to increase comparability to prior periods by adjusting for certain items that may not be indicative of core operating measures and to better identify trends in our business. The adjusted financial results are used by management to, and allow investors to, evaluate the operating performance of the Company on a comparable basis, when reviewed in conjunction with the Company's GAAP statements. These amounts are not determined in accordance with GAAP and therefore should not be used exclusively in evaluating the Company's business and operations.

Comparable Sales Performance Metric

We consider the change in comparable sales from the same previous year period, a primary metric commonly used throughout the retail industry, to be an important indicator of the performance of our retail and direct-to-consumer businesses. We include in our comparable sales metric stores in operation for at least 14 months at the beginning of the fiscal year. Stores are added to the comparable base at the beginning of the year and are dropped for comparative purposes in the quarter in which they are closed. Comparable sales include stores temporarily closed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic as management continues to believe that this metric is meaningful to monitor our performance. Comparable sales also include e-commerce sales. Comparable sales for the Canada Retail segment exclude the impact of foreign currency translation and are calculated by translating current period results at the foreign currency exchange rate used in the comparable period of the prior year. Comparable sales for the Brand Portfolio segment include the direct-to-consumer e-commerce site www.vincecamuto.com. The calculation of comparable sales varies across the retail industry and, as a result, the calculations of other retail companies may not be consistent with our calculation.

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SOURCE Designer Brands Inc.