Shoe Carnival Names Kerry Jackson SVP of New Business Development

Shoe Carnival is bringing back a familiar face to help with its ambitious plans.

According to the footwear retailer, it has named the once retired Kerry Jackson as its new senior vice president of new business development.

In this newly created role, Jackson will report directly to president and chief executive officer Mark Worden, and will spearhead the company’s merger and acquisition activities, integration of acquired businesses and synergy capture initiatives as part of the company’s strategic vision to become the nation’s leading family footwear retailer.

The company noted that Jackson’s appointment supports its “ongoing expansion strategy through strategic mergers and acquisitions to broaden customer reach and strengthen its position in the competitive footwear retail market.”

By rejoining the company, Jackson brings 35 years of experience with Shoe Carnival, including 27 years serving as chief financial officer before retiring in 2023. He will begin his role on June 9, working from the company’s Fort Mill, S.C. headquarters.

“Kerry’s return is a tremendous asset for our growth strategy,” Worden said in a statement. “His deep institutional knowledge, combined with his proven financial acumen and strategic insight, makes him uniquely qualified to partner with me in driving our M&A initiatives. Kerry’s passion for building business ultimately brought him back to us, and we’re fortunate to have his continued leadership as we expand our national footprint.”

This news comes days after Shoe Carnival announced its plans to accelerate its rebanner strategy to convert more Shoe Carnival stores into Shoe Station outposts. With this new plan, the company now expects that approximately 120 stores, or 28 percent of the store fleet, to operate as a Shoe Station store by the end of fiscal 2025.

An additional 51 stores are expected to rebanner in fiscal 2025 (20 in second quarter 2025, 25 in third quarter 2025 and six in fourth quarter 2025), with stores expanding into new markets and in markets where the brand is already known.

By March 2027, the company now expects over 80 percent of the current fleet to operate as a Shoe Station store.

“The Shoe Station growth strategy is working exceptionally well, delivering industry-leading sales growth and accretive margins across diverse market types,” the CEO said in a statement last week. “This consistent outperformance versus both Shoe Carnival and industry trends across all footwear categories has given us the confidence to accelerate our rebanner initiative.”

The announcement came at the same time the retailer reported its first quarter 2025 earnings. Total company net sales in first quarter 2025 declined 7.5 percent to $277.7 million as compared to $300.4 million in first quarter 2024. Net income in the period was $9.3 million, or 34 cents per diluted share, compared to first quarter 2024 net income of $17.3 million, or 63 cents per diluted share.

Looking ahead, the company reaffirmed its entire fiscal 2025 outlook and continues to expect net sales between $1.15 billion and $1.23 billion for the year, representing a range of down 4 percent to up 2 percent versus fiscal 2024.