Asset Impairment Charges by Reporting Segment (Detail) (USD $) In Millions, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jul. 28, 2012	Jul. 30, 2011	Jul. 28, 2012	Jul. 30, 2011
Impaired Long-Lived Assets Held and Used [Line Items]
Asset impairment charges	$ 1.5	$ 34.1	$ 1.9	$ 35.4
Payless Domestic
Impaired Long-Lived Assets Held and Used [Line Items]
Asset impairment charges	0.9	27.3	1.1	28.6
Payless International
Impaired Long-Lived Assets Held and Used [Line Items]
Asset impairment charges	0.6	2.8	0.8	2.8
PLG Wholesale
Impaired Long-Lived Assets Held and Used [Line Items]
Asset impairment charges		0.7		0.7
PLG Retail
Impaired Long-Lived Assets Held and Used [Line Items]
Asset impairment charges		$ 3.3		$ 3.3