

Making Sure the Shoe Fits at Zappos.com - ksvs
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/06/making-sure-the-shoe-fits-at-zapposcom/

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icey
It's easy to under-estimate how good the service is at Zappos.

I tried them once and discovered I'd ordered the wrong size (totally my
fault). The exchange process was amazing - I called the number they included
with my package and got through immediately to someone who was very friendly.
I had my replacements within 48 hours.

Now it's the only place I buy shoes at all - and I tell everyone I know about
them as well.

~~~
alaskamiller
Why don't you buy shoes at the mall and avoid the hassle of exchanges and
wrong sizes and the ability to wear it out of the store? Clothes, to me,
consistently sound like one of those silly things that doesn't work in terms
of online shopping.

~~~
cdr
Selection, selection, selection.

I pretty much exclusively wear Doc Martens. In any given shoe store there are
at best 1-2 different styles of Docs. There is one outlet store in the US, in
Portland, several thousand miles away from me.

Zappos has dozens upon dozens of styles of Docs, pretty damn close to every
single one that's available. They have most of them in the size 13/14 I take,
which can also be an issue at shoe stores.

~~~
alaskamiller
In a transaction where you already know exactly what you want, then yes, it
would most likely make sense to purchase online for the sake of price savings.

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Mistone
really like how he talked about go to work at his last company and not liking
it, not wanting to be there, that an amazing confession from a founder and a
huge responsibility.

Building a company that doesn't suck has far more to do with people / culture
/ and fit then free sodas and catered lunched.

additionally, he talks about the huge value of WOM and repeat customers which
are often overlooked by tech startups where its all about uptime and new
features. Love the perspective he brings to the table.

