Famous Footwear today announced its first nationwide branding, advertising and social media campaign that will reach consumers across the country with an empowering message - Make Today Famous(R).

"Our research tells us that consumers are making a dramatic shift in shopping habits - value, versatility and convenience are more important now than ever, and people are buying to satisfy needs over wants, though they're still interested in unique offerings. We also learned from our consumers that it is an emotionally transformative moment when they find the right pair of shoes at the right price that are convenient to obtain and offer something unique like a great brand or new fashion trend. From these learnings we created Make Today Famous, a new mindset that touches all aspects of our business, and inspires our customers' walk through life
by delivering compelling value, nationally recognized brands and convenient, easy-to-shop stores," said Brown Shoe President-Retail Joe Wood.

    To unveil Make Today Famous to consumers nationwide, Famous Footwear, a more than 1,100-store retailer of brand name footwear for the family, is implementing its largest, most integrated branding campaign to date. The campaign kicks off the retailer's Back-to-School season, a time when more people are shopping for shoes than most other times during the year, and includes Famous Footwear's first-ever national cable television advertising campaign and radio spots in 47 major cities.

    The campaign features a significant social/digital media component that includes dedicated website MakeTodayFamous.com, online banner ads, a Facebook page, YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/Fam0usFootwear, with a zero in place of the "o" in the word "Famous"), Twitter handle (@Famous_Footwear) and viral video. In fact, a 30-second video "teaser" released on Father's Day, which shows a dad swaddling his newborn son and raising him into the air to give the giggling child a different view of the world, garnered approximately 70,000 views in the first 48 hours. More videos are planned, including a soon-to-be released digital short, and will be available at MakeTodayUnexpected.com, which launches August 3 and includes fun and interactive shoe-themed quizzes and games.

    "The concept of being famous has changed with the advent of social media. Through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other outlets, we all have our own private stage to perform for an audience of friends, family and others, making us a little bit famous. We want to make our customers' day Famous with nationally recognized "famous" brands, great value and the inspiration that comes from finding just the right shoe. 'Make Today Famous' captures this essence in a high touch, interactive campaign that will resonate with our consumers, not only during Back to School but long after," said Brown Shoe Senior Vice President-Retail Marketing Will Smith.

    About Famous Footwear

    Famous Footwear is one of the largest footwear retailers selling brand-name footwear for the entire family, with 1,100 stores nationwide. The chain ranks among the top retailers of such well-known brands as Nike, adidas, Skechers, Buster Brown and New Balance. Famous Footwear is proud to be a national partner of the March of Dimes, and sponsors March for Babies events in more than 1,000 communities nationwide. Famous Footwear is operated by the retail subsidiary of Brown Shoe Company, Inc which has $2.3 billion in sales as a retailer and wholesaler of footwear. For more information, visit http://www.famousfootwear.com and http://www.brownshoe.com.

    About Brown Shoe Company, Inc.

    Brown Shoe is a $2.3 billion footwear company with global operations. Brown Shoe's Retail division operates Famous Footwear, the more than 1,100-store chain that sells brand name shoes for the family, approximately 300 specialty retail stores in the U.S., Canada, and China primarily under the Naturalizer brand name, and footwear e-tailer Shoes.com. Through its Wholesale divisions, Brown Shoe markets leading footwear brands including Naturalizer, Dr. Scholl's, Franco Sarto, LifeStride, Etienne Aigner, Via Spiga, and Sam Edelman. Brown Shoe press releases are available on the Company's website at http://www.brownshoe.com.

Did you know that famous footwear is from Missouri?