Brown Shoe Announces Closings for More than 140 Famous Footwear Stores Nationwide

By Liviu Oltean, Associate Editor

Brown Shoe Co. said it is planning to close about 140 Famous Footwear stores nationwide in the near future.

The decision was motivated by unsatisfactory performances in various locations, and it will be enacted in spite of the company having reported a $33.7 million profit in the third quarter of this year. Brown Shoe Co. is the parent company of Famous Footwear, Brown Shoe Closet, F.X. LaSalle stores and other brands.

An official list of stores to be closed hasn’t been released to the public, but Peggy Reilly Tharp, vice president of investor relations at Brown Shoe, commented that they are also planning to open Famous Footwear stores in other regions. Tharp added that the company has already opened stores this quarter in more than 40 locations.

According to the Pittsburgh Business Times, in the Greater Pittsburgh area, there are more than 12 Famous Footwear stores. They include: Trinity Point in Washington, Village Square Mall in Bethel Park, Waterfront Towne Center in Homestead, Plaza at Robinson Town Centre in Robinson, The Waterworks in Pittsburgh, North Huntingdon Square in Irwin, Stone Quarry Commons in Monaca, Village at Pittsburgh Mills in Tarentum, and Grandville Crossing in Gibsonia.

In other news, southwestern Pennsylvania has received more than $13 million in federal funds for a total of 489 homeowners that were in danger of foreclosure, the Pittsburgh Business Times reports. In June 2011, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development allotted the state $105 million, Pennsylvania being one of only four states that have used the amount completely. The Housing Finance Agency reported that Allegheny County alone received $7.4 million.