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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to be disappointed that my local shoe shop is now a Shoe Zone?

29 replies

WetAugust · 05/01/2015 14:56

It used to be a Lilley and Skinner years ago. It closed for refurbishment before Christmas and has now reopened - as a Shoe Zone.

I think their shoes are mainly cheap plastic tat

OP posts:
DiaryOfAWimpyMum · 05/01/2015 14:57

Their slippers are very comfy. Wink

YANBU

marne2 · 05/01/2015 15:01

I hate shoe zone, their shoes are rubbish, poorly made and hurt your feet, when I was a teen it was the place teens would go as they were cheap for fake versions of designer shoes.

Original poster
WetAugust · 05/01/2015 15:05

Shame then but good to hear that IANBU. I used to buy Hush Puppies in there Confused

OP posts:
LurkingHusband · 05/01/2015 15:57

All part of the "buy them cheap, and many times over" school of retailing.

If I'm lucky a pair of casual trainers will last a year. But they cost £10.

EatShitDerek · 05/01/2015 15:58

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

redskybynight · 05/01/2015 16:05

Agree it is a shame, but presumably a case of not enough people buying from the original shop? So they are just reacting to market demand.

ScrambledeggLDCcakeBOAK · 05/01/2015 17:15

I think a lot of what they sell aren't great but their slippers are ok and I got my favourite comfy boots there and they are still going strong over a year later even after quite regular wear.

GlitzAndGigglesx · 05/01/2015 17:20

Yabu I managed to get 9 months wear out of a pair of their £3 slippers Grin

EveDallasRetd · 05/01/2015 17:26

I get DDs school shoes and trainers from there - £10 and they last at least two terms. I buy sandals for all of us and they last us through the summer, DDs are about £10, DH and mine about £15.

I've currently got two pair of boots and a pair of winter shoes and they are lasting well.

I don't see the issue tbh, snobbery maybe?

LurkingHusband · 05/01/2015 17:28

This touches on a grump of mine (middle age is kicking in nicely) that shops that sell are not the same as shops.

Shoe fitting, making, mending, and designing are still skilled crafts.

Swiping a barcode through a till less so.

We get the shops we deserve

usualsuspect333 · 05/01/2015 17:29

Some people can only afford cheap shoes.

There must be other shoe shops that suit your requirements.

So I think YABU

FayKorgasm · 05/01/2015 18:10

I like shoe zone.

I am obviously a classless wonder.

wigglesrock · 05/01/2015 18:55

I got the best pair of Minnie Mouse trainers in Shoe Zone for my youngest daughter. They've lasted a good while, still going and Christ she is hard on shoes. Obviously the original shop wasn't doing well enough, maybe it was overpriced.

Original poster
WetAugust · 05/01/2015 18:57

the issue is that the nearest shoe shop other than Shoe Zone is now a 19 mike bus ride away.

I expect my sandals to last more than a year. I have some that are 6 years old.

Yes, the buy it cheap then bin it mentality pervades.

OP posts:
LiviaDruscillaAugusta · 05/01/2015 19:01

I buy all of my work shoes from Shoe Zone because i can get them for less than £15!

Our local one is always busy so presumably they are a popular shop!

EveDallasRetd · 05/01/2015 19:01

But how much did your 6 year old sandals cost?

usualsuspect333 · 05/01/2015 19:18

Maybe they buy it cheap because that's all they can afford?

I always buy my sandals from Shoezone.

morethanpotatoprints · 05/01/2015 19:28

I don't like the shoes in shoe zone because they are cheap looking and don't fit me.
Their slippers are brilliant and have had some good plimsolls, pumps, and sandals for the dc when they were little.
I wouldn't buy school shoes though as they don't last and think that Clarkes are far better value for money. I used to buy 2 pairs including one in the sale for clarkes for £40 and it would have cost the same or more for the tat from shoe zone.

fatlazymummy · 05/01/2015 19:36

I used to buy my son's school shoes in shoezone, they usually lasted the whole school year.
You're not being unreasonable to be disappointed op, different people like different shops. I haven't got over our Woolworths closing down, yet it would seem most people don't miss it at all.

SpottyTits · 05/01/2015 19:45

Oh I buy a pair of £5 ballet flats from them every summer wear them all through summer and most of autumn then chuck. Suits me perfectly. Not to mention not everyone can afford £100+ in one go for boots.

HappyAgainOneDay · 05/01/2015 20:25

There's always John Lewis, OP.

ScrambledeggLDCcakeBOAK · 05/01/2015 21:07

I find that comment quite insulting actually.

I don't have a buy it cheap and bin it mentality, I have cheap shoes (£9.99) that are still going strong that Iv had since school age. So over 14 years!

My shoe zone boots are still going strong a year later they still look practically new.

Iv had very expensive shoes that fell apart in 2 months and expensive boots that also fell apart in under a year.

Just because it's cheap doesn't mean it's bad. Obviously the working conditions attached to the production are another element which makes me uncomfortable but that's not what we're discussing on this thread.

If I could afford it and be sure of the quality a would use British shoemakers using local resources as well as cheap shoemakers.

Apologise if I'm getting the wrong end of the stick here but your coming across as quite a snob.

Oh and my nearest shoe shop is at least 40 min bus ride away.

ScrambledeggLDCcakeBOAK · 05/01/2015 21:10

I will say though it is your choice which shop you wish to purchase your shoes or In fact anything else from and the fact you don't like shoe zone is not what I took umbridge with.

Lifesalemon · 05/01/2015 22:09

YANBU i would be disapointed too. I haven't got anything in particular against shoe zone but I can't buy from there as anything but leather makes my feet sweaty and sore. I dont think im a shoe snob though, I just like to be comfortable. The price of some of the shoes MNers have posted about in style and beauty make my eyes water and I would never spend hundreds. I try to shop in the sales and look out for bargains at clarks etc and what I buy mostly last for ages.

GrandTheftQuarto · 05/01/2015 22:17

I found three or four old pairs of shoes of mine and DP's that had come from Shoe Zone several years ago and put away in good wearable condition (don't ask why).

They looked totally fine, but when we tried wearing them, they all fell to bits in the most disconcerting way. I think they're held together with some sort of disintegrating glue. So don't expect Shoe Zone shoes to last long, even if you're light on your shoes and look after them. But if you need cheap shoes right now rather than nice shoes when you've had time to save up, or if you need shoes you will only wear for a season like slippers or flipflops, then IMO they're okay. It's not really the same product as you get in a proper shoe shop, though - if I but shoes from Shoe Zone I'm not looking for the same things as I'm looking for in a pair of, for want of a better word, naice shoes.