Yeah, the poll is flawed because it assumes that someone might routinely buy from the same place. I buy from Google. Meaning, I Google my shoe, and I click the link with the lowest price in my size. I really do not care who that vendor is. I buy in volume, so cheap is paramount. I have bought from Amazon, Running Warehouse, Holabird, RoadRunner Sports, and a number of others over the past few years. All based on who had the lowest price.

I load up from running warehouse when my shoe dips down into $60 territory. Otherwise, I buy from road runner using VIP 10% on the 25% off semi-regular sales.

I try to have an inventory at home and buy in sale not when I need to replace a pair.

I’ve purchased my past three pairs of running shoes through active gearup. They routinely run 25-30% off their already discounted prices. Sizing can be limited at times however.

I typically buy direct from the manufacturer; too many counterfeits on eBay. I only buy from manufacturer when it's clearance or sale -- just got a pair of Pegasus Turbo's for $107.00 (normally $180) direct from Nike.

I haven't personally run into any counterfeit problems with ebay but honestly I don't think too many people are faking New Balance 860s; not exactly the sexiest shoe.

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Benjamin Deal - Professional - Instagram - TriRig - Lodi Cyclery
Deals on Wheels - Results, schedule, videos, sponsors

You need to add Shoebacca.com

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-Of course it's 'effing hard, it's IRONMAN!
Team ZOOT
ZOOT, QR, Garmin, HED Wheels, Zealios, FormSwim, Precision Hydration, Rudy Project

I think I look at Running Warehouse sales first. Then brand website sales. Also Amazon can be good if you go for two generations older. When I'm looking for something new I try Sole Sports here in Phoenix. Try to give them business here and there. But holy moly since I broke my collar bone last year and took running a lot more seriously I've gone through a bunch of shoes and took a tip from another user here that said run in multiple types of shoes.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

You'd be surprised if you knew the truth. Shoes are the most counterfeited item on the globe. 12 billion dollars a year in counterfeit shoes. The vast majority of these counterfeits are sold online online at places such as eBay. link: https://www.havocscope.com/...try-losses-to-fakes/

the poll is just fine. i anticipate what all you complainers will complain about when i construct it. which doesn't mean you won't complain anyway. there is a place where most of you will buy your shoes most of the time, when you buy online, if you buy online. most folks have no problem answering the poll.

i thought about adding ebay, but decided not to, because ebay is not a retailer. it's a compendium of odd options, and i bought a pair of shoes from ebay only to find out they were counterfeit. so, no ebay.

if there's an online retailer i'm missing - backcountry, REI - upon which you most often rely, that's what i'm interested in knowing.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

[/thread]

😀 I went with “other”

I go through around 4 pairs of shoes per year.
I did a bulk order from Running Warehouse in 2019
I did bulk orders from Amazon in 2009, 2011, 2016, and 2017
I bought a pair of shoes from Road Runner on the Active discount in 2017 and 2018
I have no idea where I got my shoes in 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2018
I think I got my shoes from mostly Holabird prior to 2009

I also like buying from Nike because of their no-questions-asked 30 day return policy, and free shipping both ways (though Zappos now has the 30 day return for all running shoes). Takes away all the worry about sizing. If I’m not sure about a size, I buy one up and down from what I think will work. Send back what doesn’t fit.

Right now they’ve got a nice additional 25% off on sale items with code “save25”. I just got a pair of Zoom Fly FK for $77.

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You will never, in your life, have a chance like this again.
If I were you, I would not pass this up. I would not let this go by...this is rare.
Come on...what harm??

Amazon is a compendium of odd options too, with the difference being that you can buy at least some things directly from Amazon itself. There is a lot more (it seems anyways) third party sellers and Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA) sellers these days though.

Just as an example I chose the Hoka Clifton 5 in Charcoal Gray/True Blue in men's size 9 more or less at random. It's available from seven different sellers, none of which are Amazon itself. Five are FBA, two are merchant fulfilled. So I would argue that both Amazon and Ebay are more or less selling platforms rather than retailers, although I think the business world still classifies Amazon as a retailer. I would also point out that some manufacturers and major retailers (across various categories, not just running shoes) have Ebay stores too.

Items on Amazon can be just as questionable as items on Ebay, and there are some items (printer ink and food or anything with an expiration date) that I generally won't buy on Amazon either because I'm not 100% sure what I'll get and would rather not deal with the headache of returns. Both platforms seem to be pretty buyer-friendly, so if you get something that seems counterfeit or otherwise misrepresented it's not hard to get your money back. I guess one other difference between the two is that you don't have Joe Schmoe cleaning out his house and selling things on Amazon, but the stuff you're buying on Amazon can be sourced from anywhere too. I mean, you might be buying something (not running shoes necessarily) that was sitting on the clearance shelf in Walmart a couple of weeks ago.

I also find it funny that you call Ebay a "compendium of odd options" but lump them all into one because of one bad experience.

I mean I don't care what options are or are not in the poll but just wanted to point that out.

Nike.com

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Let food be thy medicine...

I use eBay too if the shoe is no longer being made. Frankly, I don't want to switch shoes if I don't have too. Otherwise I use Running Warehouse.

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I feel like my answer would be misleading. I buy mine from Running Warehouse. But not online. I walk in. And I do that because they are close by and I can try the shoes on. If they were not just a couple of miles from home I’d go to some other brick and mortar. Plus I have a club discount there.

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Hillary Trout
San Luis Obispo, CA

Your trip is short. Make the most of it.
https://www.slogoing.net/

I feel like your local running store should be on there since it asks where do you buy your shoes & not where online do you buy your shoes. ymmv

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Brian Stover USAT LII
Accelerate3 Coaching
Insta

well, actually, it's does ask where online you buy your shoes. and it gives you a place to say that you don't buy your shoes online. that would be what you'd choose if you buy them at your local store.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Interesting poll not too surprising. I’m more interested in the comments. I’m old enough to remember a comment that I often received when I worked for one of the retailers there before the web. “People buy running shoes through the mail? How do they know they fit?”

What’s interesting is the comments that we always understood once the website became a good size. The way a runner shops is going to change but their reasons to shop will not. More access won’t change their buying habits. This also explains what I see in my research. A big part of my research is to determine the impact of new shoe introductions. For example I can tell you without a doubt the latest Brooks Ghost is better than the previous or at least better for Brooks. My research totally shows this.

What is interesting to me is the the marketing of a running shoe in the direct world. Their are runners who always want the new shoe. Their are runners who only buy shoes on sale. There are runners who are brand loyal but the one runner you want to capture is the runner who stocks up on their favorite shoe. That runner has a very high lifetime value. If you buy 5 shoes from once source at one time, you are really important to that source and show a high lifetime value instantly. As a direct retailer you want to capture as many of those sales as possible. We discovered this at one point and became students. When the big boss figured out what we had done he was so excited he wanted us to pile on. Those were fun times for sure.

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Dave Jewell
Free Run Speed