Shoe Carnival adds new real estate expertise

Shoe Carnival has picked a new executive for a key role in its omnichannel-oriented growth strategy which could involve accelerated expansion of a small format.

The retailer has named Jeff Fink as its senior vice president of real estate. Fink will oversee the Company’s store site selection and lease administration functions.

“We believe Shoe Carnival has a tremendous opportunity to further grow our family footwear store base and we are excited to welcome Jeff to the Shoe Carnival team,” said Cliff Sifford, Shoe Carnival’s President and CEO. “We look forward to Jeff’s future contributions and we believe his extensive experience and proven track record of building successful real estate teams and processes will be instrumental as we grow our existing presence.”

In June the company said it plans to launch a complementary, small-market store concept. The new format will be approximately 5,000 sq.ft. or half the size of a current Shoe Carnival store. Shoe Carnival said it expects to begin opening small-market stores soon, followed by consistent expansion over the next several years.

Fink joins Shoe Carnival with over 27 years of experience in the real estate industry focusing on footwear and specialty retail. Most recently, he worked for La-Z-Boy, Incorporated as Vice President of Real Estate. From 2003 to 2014, Fink worked for Jo-Ann Stores, LLC as Senior Vice President, Real Estate and Lease Administration where he oversaw the addition of 366 stores totaling 2.8 million retail square feet. Prior to Jo-Ann Stores, Fink held leadership positions in real estate at United Retail Group, Party City and Famous Footwear.

“I am very excited to return to family footwear where I started my real estate career and I look forward to joining the Shoe Carnival team to more than double our store base across the U.S. over time,” Fink said.

Indiana-based Shoe Carnival operates 400 stores in 34 states and Puerto Rico, and offers online shopping atwww.shoecarnival.com.