Shoe Carnival, Inc. announced that Mark Lemond is retiring for health reasons from his positions as president, chief executive officer and director effective Oct. 27. Clifton Sifford, currently executive vice president – general merchandise manager, will succeed Lemond as president and chief executive officer, on a permanent basis, and will also have the title of chief merchandising officer.

W. Kerry Jackson, currently executive vice president – chief financial officer and treasurer, will assume the additional position of chief operating officer. Timothy Baker, who is executive vice president – store operations, will also oversee all real estate operations at the company.

“The Board of Directors is grateful to Mark for his many years of leadership,” said Wayne Weaver, chairman of the board of the company. “Mark's contributions have helped make Shoe Carnival the successful and innovative retailer that it is today. The Board and management team join me in wishing him a return to full health and good luck with any future pursuits.”

Lemond said, “Due to certain health reasons and my desire to spend more time with my family, I have decided to retire at the end of this fiscal quarter. It has been my great pleasure to have been associated with this company for nearly 25 years and to have been its CEO for 16 years. In my opinion, we have assembled the best executive management team in the retail footwear industry. I am proud of our record of accomplishments and am confident that team will continue to drive this company forward to realize its full potential.”

Weaver added, “As Mark said, we are fortunate to have a highly-experienced team of senior executives, one that is highly-regarded in the industry. The Board has full confidence in Cliff, Kerry and Tim's ability to continue and surpass the many accomplishments that were achieved during Mark's tenure.”

The company also reaffirmed that it expects its third quarter net sales to be in the range of $240 to $245 million with a comparable store sales increase in the range of 4 to 6 percent. Expected earnings per diluted share in the third quarter of fiscal 2012 were also reaffirmed in the range of $0.55 to $0.60. In the third quarter of fiscal 2011, the company earned $0.52 per diluted share.

Shoe Carnival operates 347 stores in 32 states and Puerto Rico, and offers online shopping at www.shoecarnival.com.