Quality Items But Watch Out
For Their Returns Policy!
FootSmart
It's spring and you know what that means? New shoes! Ok, I admit, I don't really need an occasion to buy new footwear but that is what I told my husband when the box came.
I like to shop at Zappos and several other sites but this time, I gave FootSmart Online Store a whirl.
Here is my experience and the info you should know about this online store.
What FootSmart Sells
Unlike traditional shoe stores on the web, this site sells more than just footwear. It sells shoes and accessories, socks and hosiery, and many items for foot and lower body health. This includes items for all sorts of foot conditions, circulation, and back problems.
Navigation
Although this is a large site, navigation is easy. There are category specific links down the left side with sub categories underneath. There are tabs across the top of the page to access important information, a subsite called "Smarter Body", Customer Service, and other informative categories.
If you have a catalog and know the catalog number of the item you want, you can search by catalog number. You can also search by product name.
The site also has a shoe finder section where you can input your gender, size, width, price range, and category and results come up based on the info. I like this feature and it greatly reduces browsing and searching time.
Each photo is fully zoomable and you can see them in every color offered. The descriptions are full and complete.
The only thing I don't like is there is no "next" link to click to see all the offerings in a category. They do give a few suggestions for similar shows but you have to backspace and research each time you look at an item. That takes time on such a large site.
Once you find what you want, you input your size and width (if necessary) as well as color choice and click to put the items into your cart. When you're done shopping, it's off the checkout.
You can choose to make an account with FootSmart or just input your address and phone number and move on to the actual checkout page. I chose against making an account because I don't think I will be a frequent shopper on the site.
You have four choices for shipping. The least expensive one is Standard (6-10 business days) and it is still expensive as far as I am concerned.
Anyway, you pick your shipping option and your total appears.
They accept Visa, MasterCard, Am-Ex, and Discover. Once you add your card number and expiry, you will get a confirmation of order and an email.
You will get an email with your tracking number when your order ships out.
The order arrives well boxed and wrapped within the timeframe specified if all goes well.
My Experience
I went to this site for a specific reason. They have a lot of specialty items and I wanted a spring sandal that was good for balance. My ears have been messed up lately and have caused me to feel off balance (or worse) and my great looking high heeled, spiked, and platform shoes just make balance when walking that much more difficult. I found the perfect pair of good-looking sandals, made exceptionally well, for a pretty steep price. After $10.95 shipping. These sandals were quite expensive but no one else had this type of shoe that I could find.
I was lured into looking at all sorts of other things like seat pads and even peddlers and steppers but I stuck to my guns and bought just the sandals.
I didn't have any trouble finding what I wanted with the help of the special search boxes and drop down boxes where you can search by condition.
I got an email after my order went through and a couple days later, another one saying my shoes were shipped. It took over two weeks for my order to arrive, with one weekend in there, which I feel is a bit long considering the cost. Zappos has free shipping and my orders come in a couple days.
The sandals were as nice as they seemed online, fit fine, and I had no use for customer service. I liked that they have a 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed for one year policy. I didn't realize I wasn't as covered as I thought. I will get more into that below.
My experience was essentially positive but I feel shipping costs are too high and waiting time too long. I also feel that the prices of non-specialty shoes are too high. I probably will only shop at this site if I need a certain type of shoe or special item that is not sold on convention footwear sites.
Shipping and Returns
Shipping costs are based on total cost of your order. Fees start at $3.95 and go to $18.95. There is an additional fee for expedited shipping. My order for one pair of sandals that cost $69.95 had a $10.95 shipping fee tacked on. I thought that was exorbitant, especially for how long it took to get my order.
The returns policy is both good and not so good.
They guarantee their products for a full year after purchase. That's really good. But they require footwear purchases to be returned unworn and unused in their original boxes. Therefore, the policy doesn't do you much good if you wear the shoes a few times and find that they hurt or are ill fitting. Who would have a pair of shoes in their box for a year unworn? It sounds like doublespeak to me — and the guarantee sucked me in before I read the fine print.
They offer a label for returns which costs $5.95 for returns under three pounds and $7.95 for returns over that. Or you can send the orders back yourself for the actual cost.
I find the returns policy so sketchy that I am leery. What if I wear my sandals and they fall apart in a month? Can I return them? There is no info on the site about that and that makes me uncomfortable.
You can exchange unworn items and pay no return shipping but, obviously, you must pay shipping back to the company.
Contact Info
There is an online contact form to write to Customer Service or you can contact them via the means below:
Address: FootSmart
P.O. Box 922908
Norcross, GA 30010-2908
To Order: 800-870-7149 [24 hours/7 days a week]
Customer Service: 800-230-4077
FAX: 800-841-3843
Conclusion
This site has a lot of inventory and is good for people with special needs in footwear and lower body issues. They have quality items and charge quality prices.
Their shipping charges, in my opinion, are a bit high and really add up since most the items on the site are fairly expensive.
The returns policy bothers me. It seems as though you can rest easy knowing you can return your items for any reason within a year. But footwear, which is the most prevalent on their site, must be unworn and unused in its original box. So, really their policy is just the same as anyone else's for shoes. If they don't fit or you don't like them when you get them, you can return them for a refund (minus shipping) or exchange. However, the whole one year satisfaction thing is bogus unless you have a habit of putting your shoes in the closet for a year before trying them on or wearing them.
I will give this site 3 stars. They have unique, quality items and fulfill a need for many people. However, their shipping charges are high and returns policy is misleading.
I recommend this site but please read the returns policy carefully before committing to buy anything. Be sure you know that the "One Year Satisfaction Guaranteed" signs splashed all over the site are somewhat misleading. I bought my sandals thinking I could return them in a couple months if they fell part or hurt. They were expensive and I thought I had covered myself but now I see I didn't. I just hope the sandals hold up and I have no problems with them.
Recommended:
Yes
