What Does DSW Stands For?

DSW or Designer Shoe Warehouse is a discount footwear and accessories retailer with lines for men, women and children.

DSW has an online store and a chain of about 180 stores across the United States.

A typical DSW store has an inventory of over 2,000 styles and over 30,000 shoes on display.

DSW Inc., the parent company, completed its initial public offering (IPO) of stock in the middle of 2005. DSW Shoes is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.

DSW History Background

Designer Shoe Warehouse had its beginnings in the retail business of the Schottenstein family. The patriarch, E.L. Schottenstein, opened his first department store in Columbus, Ohio in 1917. His son, Jerome, was also involved in the family business as a teenager and eventually assumed an executive position. Jerome transformed the family business into a privately-held modern corporation. It was called Schottenstein Stores Corporation in 1972.

Outside Columbus, consumers knew the Schottenstein empire as Value City Department Stores, a discount retailer focusing on apparel. DSW was created in 1969 as Shonac Corporation, a joint venture between the Schottenstein family and the Nacht family. Shonac was created to manage the shoe departments of Value City and other stores.

In June 1991, Schottenstein Stores Corporation sold about half of Value City to investors, keeping the remaining half privately-held. In July the same year, Schottenstein Stores Corp. created DSW Shoe Warehouse, Inc. as a subsidiary of Shonac.

DSW eventually grew into a chain of retail stores that eclipsed its parent company. The first DSW store opened in Dublin, Ohio in 1991 as a discount shoe retailer. Consumers were won over by the spacious store layout and a vast collection of trendy, designer and mass-market shoe brands at 20 to 50 percent below regular prices. DSW showed up on the New York Stock Exchange in 2005, offering over 14 million shares for $19 per share.

DSW launched its online store in 2008 and announced a merger with Retail Ventures in 2011. Retail Ventures, Inc. currently holds 60 percent of outstanding shares of DSW. DSW aims to expand its chain to 500 stores.

Timeline: Important Dates

◾1919: E.L. Schottenstein opens his first department store in Columbus, Ohio.
◾1969: Birth of Shonac Corporation.
◾1991: DSW, a subsidiary of Shonac Corporation, opens its first store in Dublin, Ohio.
◾1998: Value City Department Stores Inc. acquires Shonac Corp. and DSW.
◾2003: Value City creates Retail Ventures, Inc.
◾2005: Shonac becomes DSW Inc. and debuts on the New York Stock Exchange.
◾2008: DSW launches its e-commerce store at www.dsw.com.