Caleres has appointed Kathleen Welter as its chief human resources officer, according to a press release last week.
In Welter’s new role, she will oversee human resources for the company’s portfolio of brands, which includes Famous Footwear, Sam Edelman, Allen Edmonds, and the newly acquired Stuart Weitzman business that Caleres bought from Tapestry Inc. earlier this month.
Welter, who was most recently vice president of human resources for environmental consulting firm Woodard & Curran, succeeds Doug Koch, who will stay with Caleres for a 30-day transition period.
The new position marks Welter’s return to Caleres after she spent a decade there as a director of talent management and vice president of talent strategy and leadership continuity, per the release.
Welter will report to Caleres CEO and President Jay Schmidt and will be based in St. Louis. Her responsibilities will include recruitment, talent management, training, culture, compensation, benefits and labor law compliance.
Caleres also announced this week that it had entered a partnership with Cash App Afterpay. The deal will allow Caleres customers to buy products in four payments or with monthly payments. It’s available for Famous Footwear, Sam Edelman, Allen Edmonds, Naturalizer, Vionic, Bzees, Circus NY, Dr. Scholls, Franco Sarto, Lifestride, Ryka and ShoeBank.
In Caleres’ most recent earnings report, the company saw Q1 sales of $614.2 million, down 6.8% year over year. Caleres is set to report Q2 earnings on Sept. 4.
