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Good shoes/boots for retail work?

Toothpick

Needs milk and a bidet!
Staff member
Today I discovered a gnarly split in the sole of my Red Wing 8700. They are going on 3 years old. I thought for sure they would last longer than this. I am planning on taking them to the Red Wing store and seeing what options they will give me, but I'm betting on them selling me new shoes.
I love these shoes too. They are very comfortable.

But I'm not opposed to suggestions on others out there.

A little about what I do:

I work in retail full time. I'm on my feet 8 hours a day, 5 days a week. Not kidding....I walk all over the store all day long. I need shoes that will be comfortable.
At work I kick pallets and boxes. I move stuff with my feet. I rub them inadvertently on metal shelving. I drop stuff on them. I use my feet as a tool to help lift stuff or move stuff (legs). I climb up and down metal step ladders. My shoes get scuffed and rubbed and bumped and dumped.

I pretty much abuse my work shoes and do not take care of them after work. The shoes come off and sit there until they go back on the next day.

I think it might be worth mentioning we have carpet at work, the low pile commercial grade carpet on the sales floor. Concrete in receiving.

My requirments:
Comfortable
Black in color
I wear "no show" black socks. So the shoes must work with those. I'm not interested in changing my sock style.
Retail environment, indoors - I won't be tromping through the mud, or long walks in the rain.

Budget:
I understand good shoes are expensive. I'm not looking to wear $500 shoes to work when I don't take care of them.
I'm thinking I can get really nice work shoes/boots that will handle abuse in a retail environment for no more than $300

My Work Uniform
Black pants, black belt.
Grey button down shirt some days
Red T-Shirt other days

Thank you all for your suggestions in advance!



[url=https://flic.kr/p/pvNza4]
 
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Toothpick

Needs milk and a bidet!
Staff member

mswofford

Rest in Peace
Jason; It looks like the construction is such that they can be re-soled. I've owned many Red Wings over the years and am a fan.
 

mswofford

Rest in Peace
From my experience with a Red Wing dealer (which has a repairman) I'm guessing about $40; but it was a while back. It's definitely worth asking before you pitch them out. The price varies with the type of sole.
 

Toothpick

Needs milk and a bidet!
Staff member
From my experience with a Red Wing dealer (which has a repairman) I'm guessing about $40; but it was a while back. It's definitely worth asking before you pitch them out. The price varies with the type of sole.
cool will do.

I'd still like suggestions. Now that I created this thread i'm really itching
 
For your use case, i'd recommend Mephisto comfort shoes - specifically their match model - click on the black version, which is what you'll be interested in. Also, take note of the fact that there are 87 reviews with an average of 5 stars. I think you'll be hard pressed to find a site that doesn't have overwhelmingly positive reviews of Mephisto Match. Check them out on Amazon (100+ reviews) as they're under $300. I think with a little googling, you can likely find a better deal. My father is a big time Mephisto fan, and he gets most of his on eBay - and has had good luck finding new pairs for under $200, and in some instances under $100.

Over a decade ago I used to wear Mephisto Matches when I spent 8+ hours a day on my feet and walked about 5-6 miles (round trip) to and from class. Foot, knee, leg and back pain were non-existent. If I needed to spend extended hours on my feet again, Mephisto is the first, and last place i'd look.

Hope this helps.
 

Legion

Staff member
Over a decade ago I used to wear Mephisto Matches when I spent 8+ hours a day on my feet and walked about 5-6 miles (round trip) to and from class. Foot, knee, leg and back pain were non-existent.

Hahaha! Over a decade ago I didn't have much foot, knee, leg and back pain either. What a difference ten years makes.
 

Toothpick

Needs milk and a bidet!
Staff member
For your use case, i'd recommend Mephisto comfort shoes - specifically their match model - click on the black version, which is what you'll be interested in. Also, take note of the fact that there are 87 reviews with an average of 5 stars. I think you'll be hard pressed to find a site that doesn't have overwhelmingly positive reviews of Mephisto Match. Check them out on Amazon (100+ reviews) as they're under $300. I think with a little googling, you can likely find a better deal. My father is a big time Mephisto fan, and he gets most of his on eBay - and has had good luck finding new pairs for under $200, and in some instances under $100.

Over a decade ago I used to wear Mephisto Matches when I spent 8+ hours a day on my feet and walked about 5-6 miles (round trip) to and from class. Foot, knee, leg and back pain were non-existent. If I needed to spend extended hours on my feet again, Mephisto is the first, and last place i'd look.

Hope this helps.

It helps a lot Joel.
They certainly have enough positive reviews to give them a good consideration from me.
If I could find them under that $300 mark even better.
 
I know you said you're "not interested in changing your sock style" but...that's kind of weird to only wear one type, and choose it to be no-shows. Personally if you're doing stupid stuff like kicking palates, dropping stuff on your feet, or using your feet as levers, you should probably look into a sturdy work boot with a reinforced or safety toe. That may mean that you have to buy some new socks...

Personally, if you beat the crap out of the uppers, don't rotate the boots, and refuse to take care of them, then the value of going resolable is greatly diminished. Three years for a $130 direct-attach soled shoe that you treat like that is actually fairly good. Just buy another pair.

Think about it this way: you buy at $300 pair of shoes. You need to resole them in maybe 2-3 years. Resoling will cost $50-100 depending on who does it and what they do. By the time you get 4-6 years of wear on the uppers, they're going to be fairly trashed given how you use them.
 
I've been in retail for 16 years. My go to shoes are Ecco, I usually put a pair of superfeet insoles in them. I use and abuse my shoes like you. They will usually last me 5-6 years. On my feet 8-12 a day.
 

Toothpick

Needs milk and a bidet!
Staff member
I've been in retail for 16 years. My go to shoes are Ecco, I usually put a pair of superfeet insoles in them. I use and abuse my shoes like you. They will usually last me 5-6 years. On my feet 8-12 a day.

Is Ecco carried by department stores? I think I've saw some at Macy's or JCPenney. Or was it Dillard's....
I always billed them as an inexpensive brand, but looking at their website they've got some nice looking kicks well over a hundred bucks.
 
Is Ecco carried by department stores? I think I've saw some at Macy's or JCPenney. Or was it Dillard's....
I always billed them as an inexpensive brand, but looking at their website they've got some nice looking kicks well over a hundred bucks.
Yes sir. Nordstrom, Dillards, I believe Macys also
 
Mephisto or Dansko. Neither is the prettiest, but I work with laboratory technicians who are on their feet all day and this seems to be their default for something black non-tennis shoe. My wife is a teacher and wears Dansko as well. I wouldn't wear them as I am in sales and have to dress a little more fancy-pants, but they say that their feet and backs don't ache at the end of the day.
 
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