Have running stores become too technical?

Yep.

How about those damn inserts they sell everyone these days; what a racket.

I agree. But I think the running shoe companies are overcomplicating things as well - too many retarded gadgets and marketing hype.

During my three years of working at a running specialty shop, it was my experience that the overwhelming majority of customers came in looking for advice. Personally, I loved it when someone came in and knew exactly what he wanted. Saved me the friggin' trouble of doing a gait analysis and hauling out five pairs of shoes.

But the K.I.S.S. philosophy went goes both ways. I understand that people like to try new things, but I always thought it was pretty stupid when people wanted to change shoes when the model they'd been using was admittedly comfortable and kept them injury-free. Why mess with success?

name the store

So from a specialty running store employee. I cannot tell you how many people i had come in with the wrong pairs of shoes and needed a proper fit.

However the key difference between you and others is that you havent had any problems in the shoes you were trying to purchase. Now down the road, she might be right and there even could be a shoe down the road that fits into the category that she recommended.

In short, she was doing her job. Now you didnt have to go through any of that. You KNEW what you needed. You subjected yourself to the fitting and in her opinion down the road an issue could pop up from a number of reasons such as increase in training, intensity or other details.

Yes, we are not doctors offices or podiatrists but we also are not a major retail store either. Who in fact will just try to throw you into anything. We look for certain clues in your feet whether its through watching you walk or run on a treadmill to base our recommendation off something besides color.

How mad would you be if she just threw you in a shoe without doing the foot examination and then you got hurt? Would you be saying the same thing?

Next time, if you know the shoe just ask for the shoe, pay and leave.

If you knew exactly what you wanted, all you had to do when she asked about the foot examination was say "no thanks, the shoes I've been wearing have been working well for me".

I don't understand the drama.

If anything, I feel bad for the salespeople. The have all these gadgets they have to worry about selling all the time.

Don't blame them.

I am guessing she was hot and you were trying to stuff your junk into her face during the foot exam. I don't understand why you would go through the trouble unless she was a little hottie you were trying to pork.

Shoe fitting is all a joke, everyone should be running in mimalist/neutral/no cushioning/support shoes.

That would be great if we all drove to work on trails, didnt have marathons in cities, and have all all roads containing pavements and concert.

We were not meant to run barefoot on concert.

Just sayin.... wrote:

If you knew exactly what you wanted, all you had to do when she asked about the foot examination was say "no thanks, the shoes I've been wearing have been working well for me".

I don't understand the drama.

I agree. The OP sounds like an idiot. Go in and tell them what you want. You didn't need an extensive fitting. You should have said so. Many people want/need a proper fit.

Did you get her number?

I understand where KISS is coming from. I went into a running store that did not carry my brand of shoe. I told them the exact type of shoe that I needed, but they insisted that I do their little routine and then suggested a bunch of bulky overprices shoes.

It's just business. Running stores are "specialty retail." If they do not differentiate themselves from "big-box retail" (SportMart, WalMart, etc) by customer service (knowledgeable employees, individualized service, etc), then they are left to try and compete only on price and selection, and if they try that they will lose, as they cannot compete with the big-box guys on that basis, and so will go BK and the employees will be out of a job. Now do you understand why the store employee was trying so hard? Maybe it was a little too hard, but give her a freakin break.

B.R.C.

A coach of mine while trying to buy a pair of shoes with a gift certificate to one of these chain specialty stores got refused when he asked for a specific shoe and a specific size... the sales person claimed that in a good faith he or she could not sale him the pair of shoes he wanted because they would surely destroy him.. he told her his experience level to no avail and after being enormously frustrated by this back and fourth he left the store and sold the certificate to a friend.

All of this illustrates how smart these salespeople are because clearly their 3 weeks of on the floor training trumps actual running experience, knowledge and general educational level.