Red Wing

Reviews 3

RA

Randy Grace

Good quality and service (please note, Im speaking from 5 years of experience with shoe model 8703 Oxfords). My job requires me to purchase one new pair of black, leather shoes per year, and they must have slip resistant soles. I literally went to every store in town looking for the best pair, and finally found them at this Red Wing. First, I will only buy full-grain leather, because bonded leather deteriorates quickly, isnt comfortable, and doesnt look right. These shoes had full-grain leather. Second, I wont buy shoes that are glued instead of stitched. Uppers that are glued together, and not stitched to the sole, almost always pull apart well before they otherwise would have worn out (thats why most of todays Nikes are a rip off). These shoes are stitched to the sole almost all the way around. Ive been buying one pair per year now, for the past 5 years, and have never had a seam blow out or pull apart. Third, you need a long-lasting, comfortable sole. These soles, although they dont have deep treads, are made of quality rubber, dont scuff floors, and are slip and oil resistant. Out of the five pair Ive purchased, there was one where the soles were defective, and split in the middle of the ball of my sole. When I took them in, the associate looked at them for about one second, then walked back, got a new pair, and handed them to me, no questions asked. That problem never happened again, but if it did, Im confident theyd make it right. These shoes also come with decent insoles. They have just the right density, and maintain comfortable support for the whole year. Theres nothing I hate more than paying for an expensive pair of shoes, and then having them try to sell me a $30 or more pair of insoles, because the shoe comes with a cheaply made one. This is also one of a few models of shoes which come in a 12B. I cant wear regular width, because they eventually wont draw tight enough without the eyes coming completely together in the middle. Ive had other places try to sell me a half-size smaller pair to fit the width, but then the insole doesnt line up with your arch, and it kills your feet. Someone in these reviews said one of these Red Wing associates tried to sell them a pair of 13 sized shoes to compensate for extra-wide width he needed. You just have to say no to that, and find a model that comes in your width. About the expense, yes, the cost of these shoes was about $120, five years ago, and is now around $140. However, my friend opted for a cheap, $50 pair of shoes, and blew out three pair in a year. Red Wing also gives our company a 10% discount, and our company reimburses us for some of the expense. On top of that, you get a free, monthly cleaning and conditioning of your shoes, and free shoe-strings when needed. That alone pays for the shoes. After trying several pair of alternate shoes that were cheaper, I ended up disappointed, and returning to these shoes. Theyre still cheaper than Ecco. One problem Ive had with these shoes, is that on a few of them, the leather dried and cracked on the top, where your foot bends when you squat with your feet under you frequently. Im not sure if that was my failure to properly condition them, or the leather itself, but I even tried weekly mink oil rub-downs on one pair, and it still happened. The last time I bought a pair here (April of 2017), one associate wouldnt say much about that, noted the model was being discontinued, and told me I was lucky to get the last pair of 12Bs. Another associate, however (the one in the picture I previously included, who is at the register), acknowledged the issue and said they had some come in with leather issues they were aware of. All-in-all, five years of experience with this model of Red Wing shoes (8703 Oxfords), and this Red Wing store, is positive. They gave me what I believe from experience to be a high quality shoe, a good value for the money, and good service. I hope they offer a similar replacement model for the Oxford, so I can keep doing business here.

ST

Steve S

Yes, its long. Its worth it. Dont say tl;dr. Read 2 reviews out of the 4 here and I have to disagree wholeheartedly with both of them. I dont know if they were from competitors or if the employees who helped these 2 people were eventually fired, but my experience was nothing but the best. I was in the store earlier this year to look for a new pair of work boots. I didnt see anything I really loved, so I simply said I would be back later. The store was staffed with about 5-6 employees at the time and I was helped by 2 or 3 of them. They were attentive and knowledgeable. They listened to what I wanted, asked why I wanted the features that I wanted and made recommendations as well as informing me about each boot, but I still didnt buy anything. I went back to the store last week and saw a pair of boots that was 90% what Id been looking for (4489). I didnt buy it then because for it to be a 100% boot I would have had to call the corporate repair shop and ask if they could change some of the eyelets for me. I didnt do that until a few weeks ago. Laziness or forgetfulness on my part. After a piss-poor conversation with that department, I just went back to the store and asked them to handle the call. Easy enough, I found out that my alteration was cheap and simple. Last weekend, close to closing, I tried on that boot in 2 sizes: 10.5 regular and 10 regular. I have always worn a 10.5 regular and have had good fitting boots. Their boots did not fit right. They ordered a pair of 10 wide, and I did not have to pay up front. I tried these boots on last night and they have fit better than any other pair Ive worn in 20 years. Maybe their boots are made better, maybe Ive been wearing the wrong size all my life, I dont know. $250 for the boots, $30 to remove the speed hooks (a personal taste) and tax, when the boots come back in a couple weeks, Ill be ecstatic.

HA

haitianhoodoo

One of those situations in which I walked into their store (something most of us put off until absolutely necessary, right?) and I was quite respectful. The female working there could obviously have had something horrible going on in her life, so of course I bore that in mind during the complete lack of eye contact, apparent disregard for what I was trying to find and general lack of speech. I was trying to find an E size. Her only solution, as another person has also experienced, was to move me up to the clownish next size (still not an E) . I asked her about the sole, because I said it would be critical in stopping a [800 lb.] motorcycle, as in life and death. Im not dramatic, I DID say that it needs the kind of sole that you can trust your life with. She, without eye contact, simply said almost imperceptibly, "Yeah". So, its just a rose garden of a day when your shoe salesperson basically implies she DGAF about your living or dying. I HATE to post bad reviews, something could be terribly wrong in that persons life, but something may also be terribly wrong with your life if you depend on a boot at work or on the road which may or may not slip in a tight spot. Please have a safe year!