Store Renovation is Key to Re-Imaging Effort; Payless and the Fresh Air
Fund Host Event Today at Payless Store on New York's Premier Fifth Avenue
NEW YORK, Aug. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Payless ShoeSource, the nation's
leading footwear specialty retailer, announced today that it is launching a
new store format, called "fashion lab," with six stores of its kind now
located in premier shopping locations like New York City's Fifth Avenue,
the Mall of America, Minneapolis, Minn., and other high-fashion malls
throughout the U.S. Four more Payless stores with the fashion lab format
are expected by year end. The new Payless fashion lab stores redefine
self-select shoe shopping by delivering a fun, inspiring shopping
experience featuring an upscale specialty retail environment with the
latest on-trend footwear and accessory fashions at traditional Payless
value prices.
Payless has teamed up with the Fresh Air Fund to raise funds for the
not-for-profit organization and to celebrate the launch of the new Payless
fashion lab stores with the Fresh Air and Fashion on Fifth event held today
at the new Payless store on Fifth Ave. Co-chairs Payless CEO, Matt Rubel,
and Estee Lauder CEO, William Lauder, are hosts of the family-oriented,
invitation-only event where guests -- including Fresh Air families, fashion
editors, stylists like Patricia Field who styled Sex in the City and The
Devil Wears Prada, and Laura Poretzky, Payless' new designer partner --
will enjoy art and fashion-inspired activities, nosh on summertime snacks,
tour the new Fashion Lab store and check out the new & improved Payless,
complete with its first-ever designer footwear collection, Abaete for
Payless.
"Today's shoppers believe that in order to get fashion and value they
have to give up the experience and shop at the traditional 'big box'
retailers, but with our new fashion lab store format, shoppers can truly
get it all -- great fashion, amazing value and a fun shopping experience,"
said Matt Rubel, Chief Executive Officer and President of Payless. "Payless
is focused on democratizing design and fashion in footwear and accessories
to inspire fun fashion possibilities for the family. With our new focus,
shoppers can experiment and have fun with the latest on-trend fashion
affordably -- without a significant financial commitment. We've been
working hard on many fronts to achieve our new business direction and our
store redesign effort is a critical step in rounding out the new Payless
brand promise for shoppers."
Payless said a second new store design dubbed "hot zone" is also part
of the store renovation program. While the Payless fashion lab store format
is a complete redesign, "hot zone" stores feature a new front-of-store
layout leveraged from the fashion lab design that is married with the core
store format. By the end of 2006, Payless will revamp five percent of its
store chain with a total of 10 fashion lab stores and about 240 hot zone
stores.
Like a Lab -- a Place to Experiment with Fashion
The new Payless fashion lab store format is extremely well organized
and engineered -- like a lab -- and was designed by Callison, the number
one retail design firm in the world, in tight collaboration with a
cross-functional team from Payless ShoeSource. The store was designed to
fit how women -- Payless' primary target -- like to shop for shoes for
themselves and for the family and features designated areas for women, men,
children, and family athletics, as well as ample space for shoppers to sit,
try on shoes and have fun.
The fashion lab store format is focused on getting product out of the
box and in full view to allow shoppers to explore, experiment and more
instantly find the footwear and accessory fashion they desire. The front
store area is dedicated to the women's collection with space to showcase
key product trend stories in a self-select environment. Large "lab tables,"
"gondolas" and other display fixtures -- all custom to Payless -- offer
ample table top space to feature seasonal trends and product stories with
efficient easy-to-access shoe box storage below.
To facilitate family shopping, the children's section, complete with
play area, is located at the back of the store and well away from the front
exit, allowing moms and parents to focus and shop.
"From the very beginning of the process, we knew that this effort would
result in a store concept like no other," said Paula Stafford, board member
and design principal at Callison. "Payless leadership was completely
committed to an integrated, holistic approach that involved every facet of
the company. Large teams came together in a detailed process and in less
than a year, we were able to create a completely new store design. No other
retailer in specialty value footwear offers fashion, value and experience
together. This is truly a first."
The new Fashion Lab stores feature materials and colors chosen to
combine and contrast a warm, welcoming feel with the fashion lab's clean,
modern environment. Mostly white fixtures allow Payless' signature color --
orange -- to visually pop and are combined with wood accents and slate blue
flooring to ground the space.
As of today, Payless has six fashion lab stores now opened in Oak Park
Mall, Overland Park, Kan.; Fifth Ave., New York City; Mall of America,
Minneapolis; Garden State Mall, Paramus, New Jersey; Miami International
Mall, Miami; and Oak Ridge Mall, San Jose, Calif. Four additional stores
featuring the fashion lab design are expected to open by year end,
including in San Francisco Centre in the heart of San Francisco's Union
Square.
Exterior signage for all fashion lab and hot zone stores features the
new Payless ShoeSource logo launched in June of this year.
Payless ShoeSource, Inc. is based in Topeka, KS. It is the largest
specialty family footwear retailer in the Western Hemisphere and is
dedicated to democratizing fashion and design in footwear and accessories
to inspire fun fashion possibilities for the family. As of the end of
second quarter 2006, the Company operated a total of 4,584 stores. In
addition, customers can buy shoes over the Internet through Payless.com(R)
at http://www.payless.com .
The Fresh Air Fund, an independent not-for-profit agency, has been
providing free summer vacations to more than 1.7 million New York City
children from low-income communities since 1877. Nearly 10,000 New York
City children enjoy free Fresh Air Fund programs annually. Each year, close
to 5,000 children will visit volunteer host families in suburban and
small-town communities across 13 states from Virginia to Maine and Canada.
3,000 children also attend five Fresh Air camps on a 2,300-acre site in
Fishkill, New York. The Fund's year-round camping program serves an
additional 2,000 young people each year.
SOURCE Payless ShoeSource, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.payless.com/
CONTACT:
Mardi Larson for Payless ShoeSource, Inc.,
+1-612-928-0202, +1-612-384-4383, or mardilarson@aol.com
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