Archived The best shoes for working retail

[lurker]

We have a "new" ETL who wears open toe wedges with a 5 inch heel. What's more useless, the shoes or the ETL? :girl_wink:

 

[mrknownothing]

What's more useless, the shoes or the ETL? :girl_wink:

Sounds like they're both up there.

 

[pzychopopgroove]

Skechers for me,nothing from our shoe dept.

Yeah, target's shoes really aren't for retail... I know this from experience.

 

[rns0504]

I wear Cowboy boots sometimes the same ones I wear to the country bar for line dancing haha. Everyone can hear me coming halfway across the store! lol my ETL and STL love it

 

[daemon]

I have been a user of brooks for several years now.

 

[smurf101]

K oh'l sells black New Balance work shoes that I love! They are a bit wider than a normal tennis shoe. I still replace them every 4 or 5 months as soon as I think the bottom is starting to wear down.

Take it from someone who has had heel spurs and plantar fasciitis. Cheap shoes are never worth it!

so very true. if you are on the sales floor, it should be a different type than if you were a cashier. and you technically should buy two and switch them back an forth every other day. you should never were the same shoe two days in a row.

 

[3LetterDevil]

I have a pair of Nike's that I love! My arches have fallen in the past few years and I have gone from abnormally high ones to almost completely flat feet, which has wreaked havoc on my knees The Nike's I have (which also happen to be red/white/silver) have more arch support than any other shoe I've ever put on!
My ETL swears by Dansko's and I'm thinking of buying a pair of them...the problem is I've only seen them in leopard

 

[redeye58]

...the problem is I've only seen them in leopard

Rowr!

 

[uncorporated]

My feet have been absolutely killing me in the last few months. It's been so bad that I'm practically in tears at work. People look at me because I'm walking funny. I think my arches are falling or something. Whatever is going on it's very painful.

I was asking around myself and didn't really get anything helpful. I bought a pair of New Balance 642 and they're pretty comfortable, and my feet hurt less, but they still hurt.

http://reviews.jcpenney.com/1573/79599/new-balance-walking-shoe-mens-642-reviews/reviews.htm

 

[3LetterDevil]

Rowr!

Oh, forgot to mention...that's what hers are :girl_wink:

 

[NoRedCards]

I have been wearing Saucony sneakers the last couple of years (they sell that at the Rack Room Shoes next door to my store)....its helped with a lot of issues I was having before that with sore feet/ankles

 

[lovecats]

Went and picked up a pair of those $50 Dr Scholls insoles. I've only worn them once yesterday. They had me standing at the door greeting:boredom: and passing out carts. Feet still hurt but not as bad.

 

[Parker51]

Probably a more reasonable choice for unstructured "natural" footwear would be something like the New Balance WT20 Minimus, which is like the Five Fingers, with a minimal Vibram sole, but with a more conservatively-styled contiguous toebox.

There was a sale at a local sporting good store, so I picked up a pair, and started wearing them at work. Some observations:

- This is a "zero heel" shoe, kind of like old-style earth shoes. The disclaimer on the box warns to introduce them gradually, so that your Achilles tendons can adjust (this warning is intended mostly for those using them for running). I had minimal problems with the adjustment, but brought in some "regular" sneakers the first few days just in case. Arch and ankle support are minimal, so they really train you to step correctly. One side effect of the low heel is that your pants might drag on the ground, so you might want to wear slightly shorter pants.

- I've gotten no challenges that this is a "legal" shoe for work. I've gotten even a few compliments about them, including from a TL (helps that I picked the model with the red laces). The first question they usually ask is, "Are they comfortable?" I would say yes, especially if you are already used to wearing flats.

- They feel very light, flexible, and as an additional benefit, are extremely quiet. I do have to be careful that I don't wind up sneaking up on guests and scaring them, though.

 

[band_rules16]

I actually wear the Skecher Shapeups. I have a foot injury that requires me to have that much of a cushion (and no, I don't wear them for the weight loss). They're pretty good. My feet still get tired and occasionally hurt, but not as bad as they did when I wore normal shoes. They used to be pretty spendy, but luckily they've come down on price. I'd check Amazon or sometimes Famous Footwear has good deals. On occasion, yes, I have rolled my ankle, but I've been in the shoes for two years with no serious injury.

What I don't get is ETLs in heels, sales floor TMs in cutesy flats (not the boys, lol), or random ugg boots on some of the cashiers. I constantly have TMs telling me how great Target shoes are and I just shake my head. I don't buy shoes or clothes at Target, but thanks for your opinion anyway. I also had an ETL tell me she was jealous of my footwear - they HAVE to wear dressy shoes. I told her Skechers makes a Mary Jane shoe that is dressy (and comes in black AND brown) if she wanted more comfortable shoes. Poor ETLs. Then again, I don't feel sorry for the ones who choose heels over flats.

 

[pzychopopgroove]

I should suggest this to all our Guest Service TMs.

Go right ahead.

 

[Bikebuilderbob]

jordans when im cashier/sales floor... beater nikes or jordans when im doing carts

 

[Leonhart621]

I use Shaun Whites for the backroom. Timbs on certain day when I pull the freezer autofills

 

[LuckyinLV]

Vibram's KomodoSport LS. They are the funny looking shoes with the toes. I don't care how silly they look to some, they aren't wearing them for 8-9hrs! They are the most comfortable shoes I've worn in a long time. If those aren't your style try out Puma's or New Balance.

 

[pzychopopgroove]

I may have said this earlier, but for gods sakes, COMBAT BOOTS!

 

[californiaflow]

I may have said this earlier, but for gods sakes, COMBAT BOOTS!

I rock Dr. Martens daily.

 

[Amly_221B]

I tried a number of shoes and eventually went to a Podiatrist and she gave me a list of shoes. But I use a specific pair Asics (no clue what the style number is now) and I have an expensive ass pair of inserts. My feet use to feel like they were on fire before, I don't know how I ever made it.

 

[commiecorvus]

I may have said this earlier, but for gods sakes, COMBAT BOOTS!

I rock Dr. Martens daily.

I wore Docs for a good chunk of the 80's and then frostbit my toes because of the steel caps.
Love the boots, wish I still had them.

 

[Reneeisxena]

I love the rocker style shoes, either Sketchers or Dr. Scholls. The ones I have now are New Balance and they were good when they were new, but now they are getting old I'm getting lots of back pain again. I'm going back to the rocker style. Just make sure to get a good fit.

 

[MrMrIce]

Some good ole chuck taylors for me.

 

[uu86]

Some good ole chuck taylors for me.

really? thanks for the recommendation. I'll be sure to get a pair of chucks to work in all day everyday.