- Payless ShoeSource
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Payless ShoeSource 
Type Public (NYSE: PSS) Industry Retail Founded 1956 Headquarters Topeka, Kansas Number of locations 4,523 (2010)[1] Key people Michael Massey, Interim CEO[2] Products Shoes, Sandals, Flip Flops, Water Shoes, Socks, Accessories Revenue 
Sales $3.32 Billion USD (FY 2010)Net income $97.30 million (FY 2010) Employees 13,500 Parent Collective Brands Inc. Website payless.com Payless ShoeSource is a discount footwear retailer founded in Topeka, Kansas in 1956 that is owned by Collective Brands, Inc. In 1961, it became a public company as the Volume Shoe Corporation which merged with the May Department Stores Company in 1979. In the 1980s, Payless was widely known in the U.S. for its Pro Wings line of discount sneakers, which often had Velcro straps instead of laces. In 1996, Payless ShoeSource became an independent publicly held company. In 2004, Payless Shoe Source announced it would exit the Parade chain and would close 100 Payless Shoe outlets. On August 17, 2007, the company acquired the Stride Rite Corporation and changed its name to Collective Brands, Inc.[3] Collective Brands is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol PSS.
Contents
History
The Payless ShoeSource logo used until 2006.Acquisitions
Circa 1962-63, Volume Shoe company purchased the original Hill Brothers Shoe Company based in Kansas City, Mo and converted approximately all 25 of their stores to the "Payless" name. In 1971, Volume Shoe obtained the second Hill Brothers Shoe Store chain that was started in St. Louis, Mo in 1956 by Al Melnick and Sol Nathanson with the assistance and aid of the original Hill Brothers in Kansas City. The St. Louis version of "'Hill Brothers Self Service Shoe Store'" went from 3 to 103 stores in the Midwest and South between 1956 and 1971. Volume Shoe originally operated the 103 stores under the "Hill Brothers Self Service" name.
Starting in 1972, Volume Shoe began to consolidate stores in proximity and convert others to the "Payless" brand. The St. Louis operation of "'Hill Brothers Self Service'" stores were known for their bare bones minimalism and the slogan "two for five - man alive!" That is, women and children's shoes were two pair for five dollars.[4]
Expansion
On June 27, 2006, Payless announced that it was launching a new logo created to represent a more stylish and contemporary company. This is the first rollout of stores in 2012 and beyond. Payless Shoe source has also opened 3 new stores in Jamaica. In July 2010 Payless opened 9 stores in the Philippines.
Payless Shoes shuttered 104 stores in 2009, and 114 in 2010. Now 475 more stores in 2011 are closing.{[http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904787404576528861653864444.html%7Cdate=April 2011}}
References
- ^ Collective Brands 2010 Annual Report
- ^ http://www.collectivebrands.com/news-and-press/2011/06/michael-massey-named-interim-chief-executive-officer-and-scott-olivet-becomes
- ^ http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m4PRN/is_2007_August_17/ai_n19452625
- ^ Oltrogge, Sarah C. Images of America: East Village. Arcadia Publishing SC: February 2010. Page 43.
External links
Categories:- Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange
- Shoe companies of the United States
- Companies based in Topeka, Kansas
- Companies established in 1956
- Retail companies of the United States
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