Complaints

This profile includes complaints for Designer Brands Inc.'s headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see Find Local Branches.

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• 

  Designer Brands Inc.

  810 Dsw Dr Columbus, OH 43219-1828

• 

  Designer Brands Inc.

  3710 Easton Market Columbus, OH 43219-6024

• 

  Designer Brands Inc.

  3704 W Dublin Granville Rd Columbus, OH 43235-7985

• 

  DSW

  One Walden Galleria Space DP01 Buffalo, -, NY 14225

• 

  The Shoe Co.

  44 Kodiak Cr North York, ON M3J 3G5

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/25/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I ordered two pairs of boots. One of which was only available in a 6 1/2 even though I wear a seven. I figured it was worth a shot. A few days later I find out that my order had been canceled because one of the boots was out of stock. I waited forever for the second pair of boots only to discover that they were cheaply, made, and not for me. so I returned them about five minutes after picking them up from the store. I still have not received a refund. Then I ordered the pair of boots that I initially wanted in my size, size 7. Shocker but I found out that those two were out of stock, and that my order was canceled. They are force falsely advertising That they have items in stock when they indeed do not. Not only was I able to order the product that they claim was available, I also received an email that my boot of choice was back in stock. I called today to complain to a supervisor about the fact that I have not received my refund, nor Will I receive the boots that I ordered twice! Again, this is false advertising and fraud. I want the boots that I ordered and I want to refund for the boots that were canceled. Why is that so hard? This company should be dismantled.

  Business Response

  Date: 02/26/2024

  Hi ****,
  
  Thank you for contacting DSW. I apologize for the inconvenience
  you have experienced from having the Crown Vintage Sila Western Boots from your
  recent orders ********** and ********** cancelled within a few days afterwards.
  I completely understand your frustration regarding this. Unfortunately, the inventory
  on our website is not live to reflect what has been sold vs. what we have
  available, and at times this can result in orders/items because cancelled because
  we don’t have the items in stock. Our IT team is actively working on implementing
  this on our website so that this does not continue to be an issue.
  
  Regarding the Mix No. 6 Leeah Cowboy Boot from order 8034252507,
  this item was cancelled 2/13. Since we do not collect funds until an item has
  been picked up and because this item was cancelled instead, there is no refund
  required because we did not collect the $65.69 for these boots. The
  pre-authorization for the $65.69 would have fallen off your Visa **** within
  3-5 business days or sooner from when it was cancelled on 2/13.
  
  Since the last supervisor you spoke with on 2/24 advised
  that we would honor $40 off your next purchase, I have gone ahead and added
  those as Rewards to your DSW VIP account so that you do not have to contact us
  to have this applied to your next order. These Rewards will be valid until
  5/11/2024 and can be used in-store or online with no brand exclusions. Thank
  you for being a DSW VIP Club member!
  
  Sincerely,
  ******, DSW Inc.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/26/2024

  I want the boots that I ordered twice! Where are they? It is false advertising to report that you have an item in stock when you in fact, do not. I want what I’ve ordered twice. I don’t think that’s unfair. I think it’s valid and to offer me anything but the boots that I ordered is completely unacceptable. When will you be getting them back in stock for real this time???? Your customers deserve to know.
  
  
  
  

  Business Response

  Date: 06/13/2024

  Hi ****,
  
  Thank you for contacting DSW. I apologize for the delay in responding to your BBB complaint. I apologize again for the inconvenience you have experienced from having the Crown Vintage **** Western Boots from your recent orders ********** and ********** cancelled. I completely understand your frustration regarding this, and how it can appear as false advertising on our website when an item is showing available and then gets cancelled because we ran out of inventory before the website was updated. As I mentioned, the inventory on our website does not reflect live sales of items, and this is something that our IT team has been trying to implement.
  
  We are currently still out of stock of the Crown Vintage **** Western Boot in sizes below a womens 9. I have added you to a communication list to be emailed when/if this item becomes available.When/if we get this item back in stock in the size you need, we would be happy to add a 25% discount to your order due to the inconvenience this has caused. I have notated your account of this, so all you will have to do is either call us to place your order with the discount or place your order and contact us with the order number, and we will manually apply the discount. Thank you for being a DSW VIP Club member!
  
  Sincerely,
  ******, DSW ****

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/21/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  To Whom It May Concern:
  
  This claim is regarding Order No.: ********** in the amount of $89.99. I canceled this order (which was for pickup at a local store on Washington Street in Boston, MA). I received an email confirming the cancelation on February 9,l 2024. I was assured that I would receive a refund.
  
  I have called four (4) times and four (4) times I have been assured that I would receive a refund to my bank (*****). I used my ***** account to pay for this pur*****. It is now February 21, 2024 and no refund has been issued. I am at a loss regarding how to handle this.
  
  I have been a long time customer of DSW. I am not sure what is going on.
  Please investigate and assist in facilitating a full refund for my purchase.
  
  Thank you!
  ******** ** *****

  Business Response

  Date: 02/26/2024

  Hi ********,
  
  Thank you for contacting DSW. I apologize for the inconvenience
  you have experienced with the customer service you received while contacting us
  regarding the refund for your recent order **********. I completely understand
  your frustration regarding this, and the miscommunication provided to you by
  our customer service representatives. Since we do not fully collect funds for
  orders until they are picked up, and because your order was cancelled, we did
  not collect the funds of $89.99 for this order so no refund would have been
  generated. The pre-authorization for the $89.99 would have fallen off your
  account within 3-5 business days or sooner. I have a file with the screenshot from
  our payment platform confirming that only a pre-authorization was processed on
  your order, and that the $89.99 was not collected.
  
  As a token of apology for your experience with this, I have
  applied $15 In Rewards to your DSW VIP account. These Rewards will be valid
  until 5/11/2024 and can be used in-store or online with no brand exclusions. Thank
  you for being a DSW VIP Club member!
  
  Sincerely,
  ******* DSW Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/18/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I purchased winter boots online from DSW, owned by Designer Brands Inc. The boots are Jara by Totes. I just wore them once last week because they are snow boots and it had not snowed at all last winter or this winter until last week. The first time I wore them the toes on my left foot swelled up and bruised. My foot doctor told me not to wear these boots again for health reasons and they are not made properly as this should not be happening. I contacted DSW customer service 6 times today because a random representative would email me back to ask a question I already had explained in my original email. The representatives did not care that I asked them to escalate my complaint to a supervisor; because my complaint was never escalated. What got me upset enough to contact Better Business Bureau was when one representative cancelled my return order that another representative had set up without asking my permission to do that first. I had a return label from DSW and he "invalidated and cancelled that return label". Their customer service is horrible and wasted at least an hour of my time today, with wrong information, questions I already answered and refusing to escalate my complaint to a supervisor or solve the issue by providing store credit or a refund. This company tries to say they appreciate customers' business however they don't. I've been a DSW customer and DSW member at least 10 years, sometimes a gold member, and yet this company cannot provide a decent level of customer service. Not one of the incompetent customer service representatives even commented about my being a DSW member all these years and all the purchases I have made at DSW over the years. I may buy my shoes from Amazon or another shoe company like ****** ******** if this is how it's going to be with their complete lack of decent customer service.

  Business Response

  Date: 02/26/2024

  Hi *****,
  

  Thank you for contacting DSW. I apologize for the inconvenience
  you have experienced with the customer service you received while contacting us
  to return the Totes Jara boots that caused you severe foot pain/bruising. I completely
  understand your frustration regarding this and having the return created in our
  system cancelled after it was created. Unfortunately, it was cancelled because it
  was created on an order that was not associated with the Jara boots and we
  would not have been able to process it successfully. I did search through your
  DSW VIP account attempting to locate the purchase of these boots and was not
  able to find any purchase linked to your DSW VIP account for these boots.
  
  Although I was not able to locate these shoes, I have taken
  your account history with us into consideration. Based on your account history and
  as a goodwill gesture, I have sent you an electronic gift card for $50 to your
  email address, and you can simply donate the Jara boots at your convenience.
  You can expect to receive the confirmation email of this shortly, and the
  activation email for this gift card within 24-36 hours. Thank you for being a
  DSW VIP Gold member!
  
  Sincerely,
  ******, DSW Inc.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/27/2024

  I accept the business's response to resolve this complaint.
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/16/2024

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I placed a pick up order on 12/24/23 and picked up my order from the Millcreek Pavilion Store the same day. The store didn’t mark my order as picked up until 2/6/24 which is when they finally charged me my $54.99 total. They charged me for the same amount again on 2/16/24. I’m waiting to hear back but I expect I’ll have to go through my bank. I’m not a regular DSW customer so maybe they’re just trying to get what they can out of me.
  
  The shoes weren’t even comfortable.

  Business Response

  Date: 02/26/2024

  Hi ******,
  Thank you for contacting DSW. I apologize for the inconvenience
  you have experienced from the issues with your order **********. I completely understand
  your frustration regarding this, and can confirm after reviewing our Apple Pay
  platform, that we only successfully charged $54.99 for this order on 2/16/24.
  We were experiencing errors when processing Apple Pay orders (specifically those
  placed to be picked up in-store) during this time, and these errors impacted
  your order, and this had nothing to do with your normal shopping habits with
  us.
  
  As a token of apology for your experience with this, I have
  applied $10 in Rewards to your DSW VIP account. These Rewards will be valid
  until 5/11/2024 and can be used in-store or online with no brand exclusions.
  Thank you for being a DSW VIP Gold member!
  
  Sincerely,
  ******, DSW Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/16/2024

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I ordered two pairs of shoes from Dsw and for some reason they have charged my credit card four times. I tried to reach out to them and they said that they charge the card initially when the order is made and then they charge it again when it is shipped they charge my account four times twice for the full amount and then split it up and charge me separately for each pair of shoes. I ordered so four charges and all causing me to bounce another bill. I paid from this account and I received an NSF fee and a return item fee.

  Business Response

  Date: 02/26/2024

  Hi ***,
  Thank you for contacting DSW. I apologize for the inconvenience
  you have experienced with the charges on your recent order **********. Please
  keep in mind that when an order is placed only a pre-authorization is processed
  for the order total, and this is because we only collect funds when items have
  shipped. Since your two items on this order were shipped separately, that is why
  we collected the $48.03 and $54.43 separately, and rest assured we only
  collected the order total of $102.46 for this order. Once the funds were
  collected, the pre-authorization of $102.46 would have fallen off the Visa ****
  within 24 business hours.
  
  Although we are not able to reimburse the fees that this
  process caused, as a token of our goodwill, we have issued a $30 refund for
  your order. You can expect to see this refund reflected on your Visa **** within
  3-5 business days. Thank you for being a DSW VIP Club member!
  
  Sincerely,
  ******, DSW Inc.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/05/2024

  I accept the business's response to resolve this complaint.
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/08/2024

  Type:Sales and Advertising Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  DSW sent me a text message guaranteeing me a free tote bags with no purchase necessary. I placed an online order and there was a problem charging my card which happened a few weeks ago as well. I had to get on the phone for over 30mins to place my order. The same thing happened just now. On the screen with DSW that had the error alert, the bottom of the screen said my total due, it literally said “free tote bag , no purchase necessary”. He tried to tell me his boss said I can only get the tote if I spend 50$. This is false advertising. After all that time on the phone he still wasn’t able to place my order and I am waiting for a call back.

  Business Response

  Date: 02/26/2024

  Hi *******,
  Thank you for contacting DSW. I apologize for the inconvenience
  you have experienced from the SMS marketing you received regarding the free
  MyPerk tote with no purchase necessary, and for the customer service you
  received regarding this issue. I have also sent this information to our
  marketing team to make sure there was and is no issue going forward with the wording
  on the marketing sent to our Shoe Lovers. I completely understand your
  frustration regarding this, and I was glad to see that you were able to place
  an order ********** for the MyPerk tote on 2/8.
  
  As a token of apology for your experience with this, I have
  applied $30 in Rewards to your DSW VIP account. These Rewards will be valid
  until 5/11/2024 and can be used in-store or online with no brand exclusions.
  Thank you for being a DSW VIP Gold member!
  

  Sincerely,
  ******, DSW Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/08/2024

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I purchased a pair of shoes for in store pick up in the amount of $39.50 after taxes on 1/26/24, using the debit card linked to my Apple Pay. These were picked up on 1/27/24. No charges for these shoes came through until 2/2/24. Then a charge came through on Saturday 2/3. And a third on 2/4. Eventually two were refunded. But then another came through on Monday 2/5. And three more on Tuesday 2/6. And now another this evening on Wednesday 2/7/24. At this point five have been refunded but 3 are still in an approved status. I’ve contacted customer service three times now, but they just keep telling me it’ll be refunded and no one is actually stopping the additional charges from coming in in the first place. I’m up to 8 total charges, 5 refunded and 3 open. The resolution I want is for two of these charges to be refunded and all additional charges to cease.

  Business Response

  Date: 02/26/2024

  Hi *******,
  
  Thank you for contacting DSW. I apologize
  for the delay in responding to this claim. I also apologize for the
  inconvenience you have experienced due to the payment issues on your recent
  order **********. While looking into your concerns, I can see that I emailed
  you regarding this order and the Apple Pay charges on 2/8. Here is a recap of
  the information I provided you regarding this order; the reason why the
  pre-authorizations kept hitting your account is because the Springfield IL
  store did not confirm in our system that your order was picked up. I just got
  off the phone with this store, and they were able to confirm that your order
  was picked up. The pre-authorizations on 1/26, 2/2, 2/3, 2/4 and 2/6 are
  showing as expired, the pre-authorizations on 2/5 and 2/7 have been voided by
  our customer service team, and there is the charge of $39.50 that was settled
  on 2/6. We have suspended the payment on your order so that no more
  authorizations hit your Apple Pay account.
  
  While reviewing our Apple Pay platform, I can confirm that
  no other pre-authorizations have occurred after 2/7. The only Apple Pay
  transaction after 2/7 is the refund of $39.50 that I processed for you on 2/8
  due to the inconvenience this has caused you. Thank you for being a DSW VIP Club
  member!
  
  Sincerely,
  ******, DSW Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/07/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I bought a pair of shoes in January for my daughter. When we received them, the security tag was still on so obviously she could not wear them. After speaking with customer service, we had to go out of our way to return them which was so frustrating because it was DSW’s error.
  
  I went ahead and gave them a second chance by ordering another pair last week. We received them today and THE SECURITY TAG WAS ON THIS PAIR TOO. This is absolutely ridiculous and frustrating. I need to receive my money back without having to return them and I also should receive some sort of compensation after dealing with this issue TWICE

  Business Response

  Date: 07/02/2024

  The business stated this has been resolved.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/07/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I brought a pair of Versace sneaker on 1/18/2024, they didn’t fit so I returned them back to store on 01/26/2024 and as of today 02/07/2024 I still haven’t received my refund back to my Afterpay account. I got the receipt as proof that the purchase was returned and still no refund.
  
  The pair of sneakers were $369.00 and I had a gift card of $25 and the remaining balance was $344.00 which was charge to my Afterpay account when I returned the shoes I told them about the gift card and Afterpay and they stated they had to return the full amount of $369.00 to Afterpay which I agreed because I didn’t have any other choice.
  
  I went directly to the store spoke with the store manager who was not very friendly at all and first thing she said to contact customer service which the I explained that I had already did and they told me to go to the store after I told her that she stated she would contact her audit department for research and would let me know. Still no refund and no communication from Manager or DSW customer service.
  Worst customer service

  Business Response

  Date: 07/02/2024

  The business stated this was resolved with the customer directly.  

  Business Response

  Date: 07/15/2024

  Thank you for contacting DSW,
  
  I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience that has been caused with the not receiving a refund for the item you returned. I see here that a refund was issued on 2/8/2024 for $344.99 and a $25 gift card was mailed to your address. Here is the order number:8881002820530 for the gift card. Thank you for being a VIP Gold member. 
  
  Sincerely, Numma, DSW ****

  Customer Answer

  Date: 07/23/2024

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I accept the business's response to resolve this complaint.
  
  Regards,
  
  *******************************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/04/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  On 10/11/23 I placed an online order at DSW.com, Order #********** that totaled $261.94.
  
  I never received one item on this order, the Clark's Breeze Fur Bootie.
  -On 11/14/23 I requested a refund via email after receiving an email stating the item was lost in transit.
  -On 11/14/23 I received an email from DSW saying I would be refunded the amount of this shoe $44.60 to my original form of payment
  -I never received this refund and contacted customer service on 11/28/23
  -On 11/29/23 I received an email response stating there was an error processing this refund and it would be processed
  -To date I have not received a separate refund for this shoe.
  
  During this time, I returned a pair of shoes from this order, the Clarks-Roseville Clog, to the store on 11/28/23. Instead of refunding the price of this shoe $39.01 to my account, they incorrectly refunded my card $225.29, which I did not notice at that time.
  
  $261.94 (original order payment)
  -$225.29 (accidental store refund on 11/28)
  = $36.65 (balance I paid for order)
  
  It appears they recognized their error and charged my card $180.69 on 11/29/23.
  
  $36.65 (balance I paid for order, from above)
  +$180.69 (DSW charged my card on 11/29 to correct return refund on 11/28)
  = $217.34 (balance I paid for this order)
  
  So, the difference between the original cost of this order & what I paid for it is $44.60.
  
  $261.94
  -$217.34
  =$44.60
  
  $44.60 is the price of the shoes that never arrived that I was supposed to be refunded, the Clarks Breeze Fur Bootie, BUT my card was never refunded this amount. So this refund appears to have been remedied.
  
  I still have NOT received the refund for the item I returned in the store on 11/28/23, $39.01.
  
  I have an email chain from DSW customer service stating multiple times that this refund has been submitted, beginning with my first request for refund on 12/10/2023 and most recently on 1/22/24. However, I have still not been refunded the $39.01.

  Business Response

  Date: 07/02/2024

  The business stated that this was resolved directly with the customer.

  Business Response

  Date: 07/12/2024

  Hi ****,

  
  Thank you for contacting DSW,

  
  I sincerely apologize that you never received your refund for order number **********. I have resolved the matter, and you should have received an email here shortly.

  
  Sincerely, *****, DSW Inc.