EXHIBIT 32.1

CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO

SECTION 906 OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002*

In connection with the Quarterly Report of Designer Brands Inc. (the "Company") on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended October 28, 2023 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on the date hereof (the "Report"), I, Douglas M. Howe, Chief Executive Officer of the Company, certify, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 1350, as adopted pursuant to §906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, that, to the best of my knowledge:

(1)    The Report fully complies with the requirements of section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; and

(2)    The information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and result of operations of the Company.

December 5, 2023	By:	/s/ Douglas M. Howe
		Douglas M. Howe
		Chief Executive Officer
		(Principal Executive Officer)

*    This Certification is being furnished as required by Rule 13a-14(b) under the Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act") and Section 1350 of Chapter 63 of Title 18 of the United States Code, and shall not be deemed "filed" for purposes of Section 18 of the Exchange Act or otherwise subject to the liability of that section. This Certification shall not be deemed to be incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act of 1933 or the Exchange Act, except as otherwise stated in such filing.