[4] In 1963, Neil's Factory Shoe Outlet hired a college student named Brian Cook as a stock boy, a man who later rose up the company ladder to become president of Famous Footwear in 1979.

By the end of the 1960s, eight Famous Footwear and Neil's Factory Shoe Outlet stores were in operation, with combined annual revenues approaching $1 million.

[4] Ninety percent of the chain was purchased from Moldenhauer that year by a leveraged buyout led by longtime employees Dave Orfan and Brian Cook, along with a group of outside investors.

[4] The move accelerated the growth of the Famous Footwear chain again, albeit the company's typical business model, which was historically based upon the long margins possible through bulk buying of discontinued products.

[5] In the ensuing decades, Famous gradually moved to a more traditional mark-up structure based upon the bulk purchase of current goods, while remaining a leading distributor of closeout branded merchandise.

[6] Famous opened five athletic driven stores named "Mind Body Sole" intending to show manufacturers like Nike, Reebok, Brooks, Asics, Adidas and Mizuno that it had the capability to sell these items through commitment to training and customer service.

In that year about 18 percent of the chain's business involved the brands of Famous' parent corporation, Brown Shoe Company (in May 2015 named Caleres), which include Naturalizer, Dr. Scholl's, Franco Sarto, Sam Edelman and the chain's private label, Connie.

[4] Test stores would average 2,000 square feet (190 m2) and would initially be launched in Denver, Tulsa, Orlando and Palm Beach, Florida, and Burlington, Massachusetts.