Investor Information

DSW Inc. is a leading branded footwear and accessories retailer that offers a wide selection of brand name and designer dress, casual and athletic footwear and accessories for women, men and kids. As of May 18, 2013, DSW operates 377 stores in 42 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, as well as 348 leased departments for other retailers in the United States under the Affiliated Business Group. We also operate an e-commerce site, http://www.dsw.com, and a mobile site, http://m.dsw.com.

Our typical DSW customers are brand, value quality and style conscious shoppers who have a passion for footwear and accessories. Our core focus is to create a distinctive shopping experience that satisfies both the rational and emotional shopping needs of our DSW customers by offering them a vast, exciting assortment of in-season styles combined with the convenience and value they desire. Our DSW stores average approximately 22,000 square feet and carry approximately 24,000 pairs of shoes. We believe this combination of assortment, convenience and value differentiates us from our competitors and appeals to customers from a broad range of socioeconomic and demographic backgrounds.

Our Competitive Strengths

• Breadth of Product Offerings
• Our Distinctive and Convenient Store Layout
• The Value Proposition Offered to Our Customers
• Demonstrated Ability to Consistently Deliver Profitable Growth

Growth Strategy

• Expanding Our Store Base
• Driving Sales Through Enhanced Merchandising
• Leveraging Our Operating Model

Our Corporate History

• January 1969 – Incorporated
• July 1991 – Opened first DSW store in Dublin, Ohio
• 1998 – Value City Department Stores, Inc. purchased DSW and affiliated shoe businesses from Schottenstein Stores Corporation (SSC), and Nacht Management, Inc.
• December 2004 – Retail Ventures completed a corporate reorganization whereby Value City Department Stores, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Retail Ventures, merged with and into Value City Department Stores LLC, another wholly-owned subsidiary of Retail Ventures. In turn, Value City Department Stores LLC then transferred all the issued and outstanding shares of DSW to Retail Ventures in exchange for a promissory note.
• February 2005 – Changed name from Shonac Corporation to DSW Inc.
• July 2005 - Initial public offering, began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol 'DSW'.
• May 2011 - Completed merger with RVI.