Dive Brief:

• Columbus, Ohio-based shoe retailer DSW Inc. has entered into an agreement with Yellow Box Corporation to open and operate stores under the Yellow Box label.

• The company will open Yellow Box stores nationwide, starting this year with three to five stores. DSW already runs more than 400 stores and 357 shoe departments through affiliated retailers.

• DSW is also expanding into Canada with its acquisition of a 44% interest in Canada’s Town Shoes. 

Dive Insight:

DSW is hardly abandoning the brick-and-mortar concept with this expansion of physical stores with Yellow Box, a shoe retailer known mainly for sandals and flip-flops often made fancier and more fun with jewels and colors, and its new interest in a Canadian shoe chain. Trying on shoes remains the easiest way to shop for them; it’s the only way to assess their look, fit, and feel, which is why many e-retailers offer free shipping and free returns on footwear, even when they don’t for other products.