Shoesday Tuesday- My first major Shoe Dazzle beef

You all know that a few months ago I tried out Shoe Dazzle, the "World's Premier Shoe Society" founded by Kim Kardashian. Read my posts here, here, here and here to find out more about the company and get up to speed on where I stand with the experience.

I've yet to purchase anything from the company. Instead, every month, I take a look at my 5 shoe selections in my "showroom" and then I ask for another set, mostly out of curiosity to see what type of shoes they have and what they pick for me. One thing I like about the company is that my inbox isn't flooded with constant emails about the shoes. I tend to get the first email saying, "Your showroom is ready!" followed by maybe 2 more before the month is out reminding me that I only have until the end of the month to purchase one of them.

Recently, I received an email from Shoe Dazzle telling me that they wanted to share with me "Kim's Pick" for spring. Here it is:

I freakin' love it. It's fabulous. Unfortunately (and here's where my beef comes in), it's not at ALL clear how I can purchase this shoe. It's not in my showroom for the month and there is no option on the website to "browse" their shoe collection. What is the point of sharing this fabulous shoe with me if it's not easy for me to point and click and have it whizzing through the air via UPS or FedEx or whoever to my doorstep? I'm not saying it's impossible to do- there may very well be a button on the site that I have overlooked, but my point is that it's like they've got this warehouse full of fabulous shoes and they occassionally show you a few, but they're not easy to buy!

Is it the fact that I haven't yet made a purchase with the company? Is there some extra set of web pages that are revealed after you've made the $39.99/month commitment? Because I'm not ready to do that!

Shoe Dazzle fans and members, please leave me a comment and tell me how you feel about this aspect of the company? Most people who have left comments on my Shoe Dazzle posts are members who are thrilled with the company. Or are they? Are they PR reps for Kim Kardashian scouring the internet for obscure references to her company in even more obscure blogs then leaving "I love Shoe Dazzle! They're fabulous!" comments on them? Seems like an awful lot of effort when they could simply add a "BROWSE" option to their website. Or maybe I'm getting paranoid. It's a tough call.

Shoesday Tuesday- Shoe Dazzle Part 3

Last week I signed up for Shoe Dazzle- an interesting online shoe buying concept. Click here to read the initial review and here for the follow-up. I'll wait. Did you check them out? Ok, now that you're all caught up... I had emailed the company asking the following questions about the service:

1.) How long has Shoe Dazzle been in operation?
2.) Approximately how many members does Shoe Dazzle have?
3.) How many stylists work for Shoe Dazzle?
4.) Once a stylist has selected shoes for you, will they remain your stylist throughout your membership? Or will other stylists make selections as well?
5.) What prompted the idea for Shoe Dazzle?
6.) Is there or will there be any opportunity to correspond with my stylist beyond the survey questions?
7.) If I have a specific event I'm shopping for, can I browse the Shoe Dazzle inventory online?

I received the following response:

"ShoeDazzle is about to celebrate its first birthday! In just one short year we’ve been able to provide thousands of our members with personalized shoe recommendations from our team of elite Hollywood stylists. Right now, we have six stylists, in addition to Kim herself, who select each and every style we offer! The stylists work as a team to pick shoes that fit your fashion profile; so, your monthly selection may include suggestions from several stylists. When celebrities do photo shoots, they don’t head to the mall; they have their stylists bring them options! Kim wanted everyone to have that VIP experience, and that’s why she founded ShoeDazzle. If you’re looking for something specific or for a special occasion, you can send a message directly to the stylists when you ask for an alternate selection. Even if you’ve decided to skip the month, you can still request and receive a second set—just in case you change your mind! We hope you find something that dazzles you!"

Looks like they answered all of my questions- once again, I am impressed with Shoe Dazzle.

Now, if you've read the previous Shoe Dazzle posts, I'm sure by now you're wondering what I've decided to do- which shoe will I pick? Even though Silvie (pictured above) is the clear front runner, I don't see a whole lot in my wardrobe that I can wear with it. (Well, I do plan to make a white eyelet sun dress for myself and they'd be PERFECT for that, but I'm going to control myself!)  Also, I can't honestly say that I don't have plenty of other similar shoes. Perhaps my advice for my second round of shoe recommendations was a bit too spot-on because I really feel like I already own plenty of shoes just like the ones recommended. I have tons of bright and colorful heels and wedges that are just itching to get out of their boxes and onto my feet once spring hits. The bottom line is that while I absolutley love nearly every shoe recommended (2nd time around) as well as Sylvie, I am going to be responsible and pass on all of them. Less is more, right? And somehow by choosing not to buy a shoe I'm completely in love with, I feel like I've made the grown-up decision. Announcing it publicly as a means to prevent myself from going back on my decision, is probably a little less-grown up, but if it does the trick, I'm willing to put it out there!

In similar news, my roommate's first Shoe Dazzle selection came in and they are SO fabulous, I can't even handle it. I actually wish they had been an option for me to purchase because they are not like anything I already own. Unfortunately they were not, so I guess I can't get them! (So far that's the only bummer about Shoe Dazzle.) They were very Christian Louboutin in a lot of ways- the heel height with a high platform, and RED soles! The shoe itself is faux black & white snakeskin with black detailing, so the red soles really pop next to the stark black & white. They're gorgeous and I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of outfit Meg puts together to wear with them. What surprised me the most about them is that even though her shoes have a super high heel (about 5 inches) and a rather large platform, they do NOT look like your standard "hooker heels" when she wears them. Online, and even when I saw them in person, I thought the platform and heel would be way too much, but once Meg put them on, I was like, "Hmm... no more hooker-vibe!" I can't explain it, but it was pretty interesting and eye opening. I'm always a little nervous about heels being a tad too high, but these great snakeskin babies just look classy and elegant. And the CL signature sole color only adds to that, if you ask me!

Finally, I want to point out another shoe listed under "Member Favorites" (where I found Sylvie):

This boot is called "Mariah" and I think it's stunning. Not to mention the fact that these boots would be a bargain at $39.95! When was the last time you found fabulous boots with a great detail like that ruffle for less than $80-$100? Honestly, I never expect to spend less than $75 on boots, so I'm pretty impressed. Of course, they're synthetic, which is why they can be so inexpensive, but that's to be expected. (And if you're a vegan, that's an even better selling point, right?)

I suppose my only complaint with Shoe Dazzle is that the experience of browsing isn't available. Although, I wonder how strong my need to browse would be if I hadn't seen my roommates snakeskin peep toe pumps!

I hope this has been informative for all of you- leave a comment if you have a question about the Shoe Dazzle experience and I'll do my best to respond! Have a great day!

Shoesday... Thursday? **UPDATED- Scroll Down**

It's not Shoesday Tuesday, but I never made it a rule to discuss shoes ONLY on Tuesdays, so... today I want to talk about Shoe Dazzle. Have any of you heard of this site? My roommate told me about it the other night and she recently signed up for it. Kim Kardashian is the founder and chief stylist of the company.  

Anyway, here's the basic idea:

Cost:
$39.95/month with no obligation- I'll explain more about the cost in a bit.

Concept:
Once you have registered with the site, the "World's Premier Shoe Society," the stylists of Shoe Dazzle will select 5 pair of shoes per month specifically for you. You select your favorite of those 5 shoes and in 2-5 business days they are on their way to your door. Shipping is included in the monthly fee. (Return shipping is also free, however, they do charge a small re-stocking fee for returned items.)

Participation:
Step 1: Complete a fashion/style survey on the site. You'll be asked to choose your favorite photos of outfits, shoes, even between different designers and celebrities. This is to determine your own personal style. Next there are some basic questions about your age, shoe size, what you do in your free time and also a question asking you to rank your favorites- red shoes, black shoes, white shoes, gold/silver shoes and pastel shoes.

Step 2: Next you are asked to register with the site. According to thewebsite FAQ's, there is NO obligation to purchase, and your credit card will not be charged until you select a shoe, however, you are asked to input the credit card info.

Step 3: Wait for your selections. They will arrive monthly.

Seems simple, right? The key for me was the "no obligation" aspect. If I don't want any of the shoes they've selected, I can do one of two things. First, I can pass on them all and skip the shoe purchase that month. Provided I choose this option no later than the 5th of the month, my credit card will not be charged. The second option is to request a different set of shoes. According to the site, if I do this, I'll be asked a few more questions about what I'm looking for in a shoe, so that the next set of selections is more in line with my wants/needs.

I signed up for the service mostly to see how good the stylists are at selecting shoes for me. I'm keeping an open mind, but I think the "survey" was a bit bare bones- there were hardly any questions about lifestyle, much less about profession or what type of shoes you hope to gain from the service. Time will tell. According to the site, once registered, it may take a few days for the first set of shoe selections to come through. I'll be certain to keep all of you updated. And maybe my roommate will offer her opinion on the service as well. (Whaddaya think about a guest post, Meg?)

Leave a comment if you've used Shoe Dazzle before, or even if you haven't. For me, shoe shopping is all about how great I feel in the shoes once I try them on. I'm not sure online shopping for shoes will ever make me feel that way. However, if Shoe Dazzle is able to offer shoes that are unique and not available elsewhere, maybe they'll be quite a success. Who knows- maybe they already are a smashing success and I'm just not that "with it" because I'm only hearing about them now! I emailed the company with a handful of questions about the process, the stylists and the society itself. Hopefully they'll get back to me and of course once they do (if they do), I'll pass all that information along to you.

Have a fabulous Thursday, everyone!

UPDATED:

So, even though they said it would take several days, the Shoe Dazzle stylists got my "March Showroom" ready in a matter of hours! Nicely done, Shoe Dazzle! Here is what they included in my showroom:

None of these shoes really speak to me, at least not for $39.95 (even with shipping included). I've said it before and I'll say it again- I'm a cheapskate! None of the heels seem special enough that I'd make an unplanned purchase for them and I'll be totally honest about the flats- I go through them so fast that I buy 'em cheap and often. There's no way on earth I'd EVER spend forty bucks on a pair of ballet flats. I was just about to click "Send Me New Shoe Options" when I happened to scroll a little further down and I saw a section titled "Member Favorites" and included were these:

If this shoe isn't ME, I don't know what is! The shape, the print, the color- I love them! The heel height is a tad extreme for my daily lifestyle, but I am really diggin' these little babies. So, here's what I'm going to do: I'm going to bookmark these, but I'm also going to click "Send Me New Shoe Options" to see what they send me and also to experience that element of this "Society." If I don't like the next round of shoes, I'll consider getting these ones, if for no other reason than I absolutely LOVE them! But also because it's research gosh darnit! And you ALL deserve to be educated consumers, right? Call me a martyr if you must, but I will continue to "research" beautiful shoes until every single one of you is satisfied! Check back soon for an update!