Brown Shoe Forms Footwear Partnership With Music, Entertainment Superstar Fergie

Brown Shoe Forms Footwear Partnership With Music, Entertainment Superstar Fergie

Shoes expected to be available to consumers for spring 2009 season

ST. LOUIS, May 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter and actress Fergie can add one more credit to her lengthy list -- shoe maven. Brown Shoe (NYSE:BWS) (http://www.brownshoe.com/) has signed with the multi-platinum artist to create her namesake shoe brand, appealing to fashionistas and Fergie fans alike.

"I have always loved fashion because it's a great way to express your mood. And I'm definitely a shoe lover," said Fergie. "The right pair of shoes can change the feel of an outfit, and even change how a woman feels about herself. A woman can wear confidence on her feet with a high stiletto, or slip into weekend comfort with a soft ballet flat."

Brown Shoe product developers are collaborating with Fergie to capture her style sensibilities in a debut collection for spring 2009. Retailers can take a sneak peek at early designs at the June 2008 Fashion Footwear Association of New York (FFANY) shoe show. Plans for the launch of Fergie footwear include a dedicated web site and personal appearances.

"We envision the Fergie consumer as a woman who is chic and fashionable, loves to wear the latest trends, and looks for distinctive details when shopping for shoes to add to her already considerable collection -- much like Fergie herself," said Brown Shoe Wholesale President Gary Rich. "Women around the globe know and love Fergie for her music and her bold style. Through this footwear partnership, we can establish another way for Fergie to connect with her fans."

The partnership was facilitated by Fergie's marketing agents at Wilhelmina Artist Management. "When representing a talent like Fergie, who was the biggest selling female artist of the past year, we have one mandate, and that is to find partners and brands that are the most successful in their category and representative of the true essence of the artist," states Sean Patterson, President Wilhelmina Artist Management. "With her sense of style, her talent, and her core interests, we are pleased to partner Fergie with Brown Shoe."

Fergie is a three-time Grammy Award winner with four number one singles, including three from her six million-selling debut solo album The Dutchess. She was named Best Pop/Rock Female Artist at the 2007 American Music Awards and Best Female Artist at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, and performed at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards in February. Fergie's recent projects include a song for the Sex and the City: The Movie soundtrack, "Labels or Love," which features the television show's recognizable theme music, and a collaboration with rapper Nelly. In addition to the movie soundtrack, "Labels Or Love" will also be one of four bonus tracks on the deluxe new edition re-release of The Dutchess.

Brown Shoe's roster of entertainment brand partners includes legendary musician Carlos Santana, country music superstar Reba McEntire and television personality Gretta Monahan.

About Brown Shoe

Brown Shoe is a $2.4 billion footwear company with global operations. Brown Shoe's Retail division operates Famous Footwear, the approximately 1,100-store chain that sells brand name shoes for the family, approximately 300 specialty retail stores in the U.S., Canada, and China under the Naturalizer, Brown Shoe Closet, FX LaSalle, and Franco Sarto names, and Shoes.com, the Company's e-commerce subsidiary. Brown Shoe, through its Wholesale divisions, owns and markets leading footwear brands including Naturalizer, LifeStride, Via Spiga, Nickels Soft, Connie and Buster Brown; it also markets licensed brands including Franco Sarto, Dr. Scholl's, Etienne Aigner, Carlos by Carlos Santana and Hot Kiss, as well as Barbie, Disney and Nickelodeon character footwear for children. Brown Shoe press releases are available on the Company's website at http://www.brownshoe.com/.

About Wilhelmina Artist Management

In 1998, as an innovator in the industry, Wilhelmina Models became the first fashion company to develop a specific division to exclusively represent premier talent in the worlds of music, sports and entertainment. Today, that division called Wilhelmina Artist Management, is one of the industry's finest, with a roster that includes Fergie, Natasha Bedingfield, Heather Graham, Amy Smart and Justin Chambers, among others.

Wilhelmina Artist Management creates, develops and manages celebrity-powered campaigns, product lines, private brand licensing, endorsements, sponsorships, talent appearances and corporate entertainment strategies.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Source: Brown Shoe

CONTACT: Erin Conroy of Brown Shoe, +1-314-323-8301,
econroy@brownshoe.com; or Lauren Kucerak of BNC | Bragman Nyman Cafarelli,
+1-212-253-4646, LKucerak@bncpr.com, for Wilhelmina Artist Management; or
Hillary Siskind of Interscope Geffen A&M, +1-212-841-8055,
Hillary.Siskind@umusic.com

Web site: http://www.brownshoe.com/

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Profile: International Entertainment