Ownership Submission
FORM 3
 UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

INITIAL STATEMENT OF BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP OF SECURITIES

Filed pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Section 17(a) of the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935 or Section 30(h) of the Investment Company Act of 1940
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(Print or Type Responses)
1. Name and Address of Reporting Person *
  Bernard Robert J
 2. Date of Event Requiring Statement (Month/Day/Year)
08/30/2010		 3. Issuer Name and Ticker or Trading Symbol
STAGE STORES INC [SSI]
(Last)
(First)
(Middle)
10201 MAIN STREET		 4. Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer
(Check all applicable)
_____ Director _____ 10% Owner
__X__ Officer (give title below) _____ Other (specify below)
President and COO / South Hill Division
 5. If Amendment, Date Original Filed(Month/Day/Year)
(Street)

HOUSTON, TX 77025		 6. Individual or Joint/Group Filing(Check Applicable Line)
_X_ Form filed by One Reporting Person
___ Form filed by More than One Reporting Person
(City)
(State)
(Zip)
Table I - Non-Derivative Securities Beneficially Owned
1.Title of Security
(Instr. 4)		 2. Amount of Securities Beneficially Owned
(Instr. 4)		 3. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I)
(Instr. 5)		 4. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership
(Instr. 5)
Common Stock 20,000 (1)
D
 

Reminder: Report on a separate line for each class of securities beneficially owned directly or indirectly. SEC 1473 (7-02)
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Table II - Derivative Securities Beneficially Owned (e.g., puts, calls, warrants, options, convertible securities)
1. Title of Derivative Security
(Instr. 4)		 2. Date Exercisable and Expiration Date
(Month/Day/Year)		 3. Title and Amount of Securities Underlying Derivative Security
(Instr. 4)		 4. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security 5. Ownership Form of Derivative Security: Direct (D) or Indirect (I)
(Instr. 5)		 6. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership
(Instr. 5)
Date Exercisable Expiration Date Title Amount or Number of Shares
Stock Appreciation Rights 08/30/2012 08/30/2017 Common Stock 50,000 (2) $ 11.07 D  

Reporting Owners

Reporting Owner Name / Address Relationships
Director 10% Owner Officer Other
Bernard Robert J
10201 MAIN STREET
HOUSTON, TX 77025		       President and COO South Hill Division

Signatures

/s/ R.E. Stasyszen, Attorney in Fact for Robert J. Bernard 09/02/2010
**Signature of Reporting Person Date

Explanation of Responses:

* If the form is filed by more than one reporting person, see Instruction 5(b)(v).
** Intentional misstatements or omissions of facts constitute Federal Criminal Violations. See 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 15 U.S.C. 78ff(a).
(1) On August 30, 2010, the reporting person was granted 20,000 shares of restricted common stock. The shares will vest, on a three-year cliff basis, on August 30, 2013.
(2) On August 30, 2010, the reporting person was granted Stock Appreciation Rights (SARs) with respect to a total of 50,000 shares of common stock. The grant price for the SARs is $11.07 per share of common stock, which was the closing price of the issuer's common stock on the grant date. The shares will vest as follows: 25,000 shares on August 30, 2012, 12,500 shares on August 30, 2013, and 12,500 shares on August 30, 2014. They will expire on the earlier of (i) sixty days after termination of employment (one year if termination is due to death, disability or retirement), or (ii) seven years from the date of grant.

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