Designer Brands Names Sheamus Toal as Its New Chief Financial Officer

DSW parent company Designer Brands has found its new chief financial officer.

On Wednesday, the footwear company said it hired Sheamus Toal as its new executive vice president, principal financial officer and CFO, effective Feb. 16.

As such, Mark Haley, who has served as interim principal financial officer during the transition period, will return full time to his position as senior vice president, controller and principal accounting officer.

Toal replaces Jared Poff, who stepped down from the role in October after 10 years with the company.

Toal joins Designer Brands from The Children’s Place, where he most recently served as chief operating officer and chief financial officer. Previously, he served as executive vice president, chief financial officer of Saatva.com. Earlier, Toal spent more than a decade in senior leadership roles at the multi-brand publicly traded retailer New York & Company, including 12 years as chief financial officer, and then later served as chief executive officer.

“I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to join Designer Brands and work alongside such a talented leadership team during an incredibly exciting and transformative period,” Toal said in a statement. “I look forward to partnering closely across the organization to build on the strong foundation already in place, strengthen our financial and operational capabilities, and support the company’s long-term growth strategy.”

Doug Howe, chief executive officer at Designer Brands, added that Toal brings an “exceptional blend of financial expertise and operational leadership, with a strong track record of navigating complexity and building resilient, high-performing organizations.”

“I am confident his experience working closely with management teams, boards, and the investor community will be invaluable as we continue to execute on our strategic initiatives and drive long-term value for our stakeholders,” Howe noted.

The hire comes just days after the DSW parent company confirmed it had conducted a round of layoffs at the end of January. Although it wasn’t immediately clear how many employees were impacted, sources indicated that the layoffs were conducted across operations and brands.

“As we continue the progress we’ve made in advancing our strategies, last week we took actions to simplify our organizational structure, reduce complexity, and improve speed and accountability,” a Designer Brands spokeswoman told FN earlier this month. “These changes strengthen our ability to execute, manage costs, and create long-term value for our customers, our teams and our business.”

In Designer Brands’ most recent third quarter report for the three months ended Nov. 1, net income rose nearly 40 percent to $18.2 million, or 35 cents a diluted share, from $13.0 million, or 24 cents, a year ago. But sales were down 3.2 percent to $752.4 million from $777.2 million a year ago, while total comparable store sales fell 2.4 percent.