Hello all , so I wento to my local running store exactly last week. I was looking for a pair of cuchioned shoes and got my hands on some Avias with a good price offer. The problem is I use 11.5 size shoes and these were 12.5 . The employee insists that avia was know for oversizing their shoes and than this pair should fit me nice. I tried them on standing and felt them big but ok. That’s untill I couple of days later I used them to walk and start noticing my feet to “dance” inside the shoe, it was loose as heel and even look big on me. Now I’m stuck with these shoes,out of cash to get another pair and don’t have the receipt of purchase. I’m pretty sure the store guy remembers me since I provided him with a large knowleadge on shoe types, brands and models. The question is what can I do know? exactly 7 days away from purchased day. I’ll like to return them and get something else from the same store. The sneakers are in perfect condition. How would you guys approach this issue? I;m currently desperated to have a training shoes for my 1/2 marathon training starting next week.thanks…
Tell them what the salesman told you about the size and it does not fit right. Just be honest about it if they dont except never go back and email everybody you know about it. If you dont look what these guys did to finman.
thanks… Who’s finnman?
search florida cheat on forum though keep in mind innocent until proven guilty.
dude that was something else, I can’t imaging seeing that guy next to me on starting line or (at the finish) I remember seeing that thread around but never visited it…
I can’t believe you lost your receipt and paid with cash. If it was CC, you would at least be able to prove it. I would just go in and bat your eyes and hope the guy will exchange it. What makes it worse though is you used them so not even sure they can sell them to someone else.
If your flirting doesn’t work, just buy some thick insoles and wear thick socks. It would add weight but I’m sure it would work.
I worked in a running store for awhile and if you came to us and said they were not working no matter the problem we would exchange the shoes for something else. Reciept doesnt matter. Store policy. Hopefully the store you got it from operates like the one I worked in.
-Adam
If it is truly a local running store, you should not have a problem. Now, if you have not “run” in the shoes you may not want to jump to the conclusion they are wrong. What time of day did you try them on? Had you gone for a run earlier in the day? Feet swell. I usually wear a shoe a half to full size larger.
Again, if it is a local store, even if you ran in them and hated them (not a marathon but a mile or two) the better ones would take them back and get you something you liked…that is their business.
Just a note for the future.
Try to buy your shoes direct online. Many of these shops have generous return policies.
For example, several executives at Nike could only have orgasms by killing a dog and canceling the line of shoes I happened to be wearing.
So what I would do is order four pairs of their different new models and wear each for a week, then return some or all of them if I didn’t like them within the 30 day, no questions asked period, and get my money back. Sometimes they had blood stains (My feet are fickle).
Newton has the same policy.
Take, them back explain it to the employee. Worst case I’d say they’d hit you with a restocking fee which I like to think of as a rental fee to try the shoes out. No offense but buying shoes isn’t a perfect science. Chances are the guy there really did think you need that 12.5 versus teh 11.5. If you want to be able to go into a store and try on shoes (or anything) you pay a bit of a premium for it but it’s a lot nicer than ordering online sometimes.
Now, before you go in you might ask around and get some opinions from friends who have run for a while as far as the sizing on your feet. You probably already know this but yes generally running shoes are bought a good size to size and a half larger than your measured foot size as well as dress shoe size (which generally matches your measured size). Another quick test is to put the shoe on, lace it up, and locate where the ball of your foot is in the shoe. Usually you can just feel for the bony top of your first metatarsal head, or the joint above you big toe and above the ball of your foot. Note where that is in the shoe with the shoe all laced up and then take the shoe off, flex it in your hands to see where it bends in the forefoot. The idea is that the center of the bend in the front of the shoe should occur at the same spot as the ball of your foot sits in the shoe. Usually if you buy your actual measured shoe size in a running shoe the shoe will bend behind the ball of your foot so buying the larger size not only reduces the chances of loosing a toenail but also aligns everything correctly.
I just wanted to point out the above as having worked on and off in a specialty running store for years I’ve run into the wanting to size a customer up, sometimes WAY up but often if they’ve never done it before it’s a bit dicey as they might be back for a return rather quickly. But then, I’d say the vast vast majority of people who you do size up no matter how much they fought it, come back later very happy with the change in size and stick to that size from now on. The shoe flex text is a better way to explain it than the “well your feet will swell” reason for buying a larger size.
But then again not everyone is the same and some people love tight shoes and never have any issues with it. Hence the inexact science of fitting shoes…
Anyways good luck on the shoes. I’d guess the return will be no problem but paying with cash usually means expect store credit if anything.
Exactly. The #1 issue I had with selling running shoes was convincing folks that they really did need to size up at LEAST a full size from their measured size.
And the #1 reason people wanted to return or exchange shoes, almost always within a one week time frame, was that they thought their shoes were too big…they usually weren’t and after another explanation and a little education, could be convinced to give them another try and ended up happy.
If you still have the shoebox, it may have a tag or code on it that will show that the shoes came from that store. That would be enough to have us swap out a pair in new condition even without a receipt.
Best bet is to go in with CLEAN shoes and box, be NICE and treat the store staff with respect as you ask them to accomodate your request. You did, after all, lose your receipt, and the shoes may be the proper size. You don’t want to be THAT GUY…trust me, you really don’t…the bad running karma isn’t worth the $70. 
G