National shoe store chain coming to The Citadel

A North Carolina-based shoe retailer with more than 1,100 stores in 36 states will open its first store this spring in Colorado Springs when it moves into a portion of the old Steve & Barry’s space at The Citadel mall.

Shoe Dept. Encore, one of several retailers operated by Shoe Show Inc., will occupy nearly 24,000 square feet on the mall’s first level. The store will open in mid-March.
Shoe Dept. Encore describes itself as a family shoe store, with name-brand products such as Florsheim, Rockport, Bostonian, Converse, Nine West, Crocs and several others.

“We targeted Colorado Springs because we thought it was a retail market that needed a better selection of shoe brands at an everyday low price,” said Kirk Krull, vice president of real estate and construction. He described Shoe Dept. Encore as the chain’s “top of the line retail concept.”

Shoe Show's first Colorado store will open in Aurora at the end of February. Shoe Show Inc. has 1,132 stores, mostly in the East and Midwest, but with some stores in Arizona and New Mexico.

The store will have a men’s seating area with a television showing news and sports, while a children’s area will have a TV showing cartoons and other kids’ fare.

Jill Lais, a Citadel spokeswoman, said the mall is looking forward to the new retailer to help generate buzz and customer traffic.

“Anytime you’re bringing in a new retailer to the shopping center, it’s exciting and it brings people in,” she said. “But a new-to-the-market store, people come because they want to see what the store has to offer and what it is.”
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