Payless fashions franchise success

TOPEKA, Kan. — The desire for affordable, stylish shoes is something shared by U.S. and international consumers alike, which is why Collective Brands' Payless ShoeSource unit has been able to build a successful franchise business overseas. The company announced Thurday the opening of its 100th franchise store, which is located in Cirebon, Indonesia. The store represents the 7th store in Indonesia to date.

"The franchise model has proven to be an effective way to quickly reach more international markets with the Payless brand and all it has to offer -- great fashion, well-recognized brands, product quality and leading customer service all at a great price," said LuAnn Via, CEOand president of Payless ShoeSource. "Payless brings the know-how in footwear specialty retailing and powerful seasonal product collections featuring well-recognized brand names; our franchise partners bring their strong infrastructure and experience within the local markets in which we operate -- now 11 countries in all. Our franchise program has exceeded our expectations, and we are excited about future growth for Payless across the globe."

Payless launched its franchise operation in 2009 with its first-ever franchise store located in Kuwait, which also represented among the first Payless stores in the Eastern Hemisphere. In addition to Kuwait, It now operates franchise stores inSaudi Arabia, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Israel, Indonesia and Turkey.

The company said it expects its franchise program to createapproximately 700 stores in existing and new countries by 2014.