Designer Brands Inc. 8-K

What Happened

• Designer Brands Inc. (DBI) filed an 8-K (dated Jan 29, 2026) reporting that on Jan 27, 2026 it sued Worldpay, LLC in Franklin County, Ohio and moved for a temporary restraining order (TRO) and preliminary injunction to stop Worldpay’s purported termination of a Bank Card Merchant Agreement dated on or about Sept 12, 2014.
• On Jan 28, 2026 the Court issued a TRO enjoining Worldpay from terminating the Agreement or ceasing performance before the contract’s scheduled expiration (May 31, 2026), finding DBI is more likely than not to succeed on breach of contract and declaratory relief claims. DBI says Worldpay served a termination notice on Jan 22, 2026 and later a notice of non‑renewal.

Key Details

• Agreement initial date: on or about Sept 12, 2014; current term expires May 31, 2026.
• Notices: Termination notice delivered Jan 22, 2026; DBI filed suit Jan 27, 2026; court issued TRO Jan 28, 2026; Form 8-K filed Jan 29, 2026.
• Scope: Worldpay is the sole in‑store card processor for nearly 500 DSW stores and processes over half of DBI’s U.S. online sales.
• Dispute points: Worldpay alleges a contractual default tied to a financial metric (which DBI disputes); Worldpay offered a 3‑month transition at substantially higher fees that DBI calls commercially unreasonable. DBI is seeking injunctive relief and damages and is pursuing alternative processor options.

Why It Matters

• If Worldpay discontinues services before DBI can transition, DBI could be unable to process a majority of in‑store or a large portion of online card transactions, which the company says could materially hurt operations and financial performance.
• The TRO preserves current processing for now, but outcomes of the preliminary injunction and negotiations (including transition terms) will determine near‑term operational and financial risk. DBI is pursuing legal remedies and exploring short-, medium- and long‑term alternatives.