Designer Brands Inc. (NYSE:DBI) Q3 2023 Earnings Conference Call December 5, 2023 8:30 AM ET

Company Participants

Ashley Firlan - Vice President at Edelman Smithfield

Doug Howe - Chief Executive Officer

Laura Denk - President of DSW

Jared Poff - Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administrative Officer

Conference Call Participants

Gabriella Carbone - Deutsche Bank AG

Jay Sole - UBS

Operator

Good morning, and welcome to the Designer Brands Third Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call. All participants will be in a listen-only mode. After today's presentation, there will be an opportunity to ask questions. Please note, this event is being recorded.

I'd now like to turn the conference over to Ashley Firlan with Edelman Smithfield. Please go ahead.

Ashley Firlan

Good morning. Earlier today, the Company issued a press release comparing results of operations for the 13-week period ending October 28, 2023, to the 13-week period ended October 29, 2022.

Please note that the financial results that we will reference during the remainder of today's call excludes certain adjustments recorded under GAAP unless specified otherwise. For a complete reconciliation of GAAP to adjusted earnings, please reference our press release.

Additionally, please note that remarks made about the future expectations, plans and prospects of the Company constitute forward-looking statements. Results may differ materially due to the various factors listed in today's press release and the Company's public filings with the SEC. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements.

Joining us today are Doug Howe, Chief Executive Officer; Jared Poff, Chief Financial Officer; and Laura Denk, President of DSW.

I will now turn the call over to Doug.

Doug Howe

Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us today. The third quarter was difficult for our business. Macro headwinds continued to impact us, most acutely within our Retail segment traffic as consumers remain under pressure and the overall footwear market contracted for the first time since the pandemic. Because our business is heavily weighted towards dress and seasonal, unseasonably warm weather also had an outsized impact on our topline. We also faced headwinds that we believe demonstrate our need to operate with even greater speed while increasing the level of innovation, newness and fashion in our assortments.

To this end, we have made several strategic decisions regarding leadership across our organization, and we will be diligent as we embark on the journey of backfilling these roles in order to best position our business for the future.