Some time ago, I reached out to a friend who has been living and working in Spain for many years as a tour guide. I figured if anyone knows what shoes to wear to walk for miles each day in Europe without being mistaken for a dumb American tourist, it's her.
She recommended one pair of waterproof hiking shoes, and a pair of Mephistos. She acknowledged that Mephistos are expensive, but worth it.
Last weekend, I walked into a shoe store in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh, and asked to try on a cute pair of Mephisto sandals. The store was about ten minutes to closing and the staff had no real interest in helping me. I had to walk up to the three people standing at the cash register looking grumpy and ask if I could quickly try on a pair. I really wanted to get a feel for my size, since Mephistos tend to go by European sizing, where I can be either a 40 or 41.
One salesman reluctantly went in the back and came out with a different pair of Mephistos. They didn't have the pair I liked in the 40, so he brought these, which I was happy to try on but which I did not like nearly as much. The guy insisted on putting them on my feet for me (I thought we were over that in shoe stores), tightening them a bit too much. They were comfortable, but I wasn't positive I didn't need a bigger size. This guy had no interest in getting the next size up for me to try, and I was pretty sick of the side eye I was getting from the staff, so I said no thank you and left.
But, I have been thinking about these shoes ever since. After two weekends in a row of city walking, I really wanted to find a pair of sandals that are comfortable for the 6-7 miles a day I walk while on vacation but do not look like birkenstocks or hiking shoes.
Then I remembered that I live in New Hampshire, land of few retail options.
I did a product search from Mephistos website and they list The Walking Store as a retailer carrying their shoes. I stopped by the local store after work and the saleslady didn't even know what brand I was talking about. She said there are other Walking Store locations in towns further away, but her coworker said they don't have Mephistos, either. Then she suggested I check Famous Footwear. She was trying to be helpful, but she had no clue what these shoes are or that they are a premium (expensive) brand.
So, silly me, I thought I could just call Mephisto directly and ask what size they recommended for a 9.5 foot. I went to Mephisto and chose the United States version of the website and scrolled down the fine print. Under "Corporate" there is an option to "Contact us." Great! Except there is no phone number. It's an email form. I don't mind sending emails in general but seriously, I can't just call? So I tried the website option that was specifically for online ordering. There is a phone number for calling order support. Great! I called it (888-234-5450). Here's what I heard:
"Thank you for calling online order support. We are here to help you place your order online from the brand you trust...[number options - I chose 2, for specific ordering/product help] "Our website uses Shopatron to support online customers placing orders. Shopatron representatives will not have the expertise to answer questions regarding inventory or product specific information. If you have product questions, warranty questions, or technical questions about a product, it is best to call the brand or manufacturer directly. You can likely find a product information phone number on a manufacturer's website."
Um. Except you can't.
I tried seeking Mephisto on Twitter. No go. The only Twitter account is @MephistoShoesPB, which is a Palm Beach, FL store that hasn't tweeted anything since 2016.
I did a store locator search on Nordstrom. There are zero Nordstroms in New Hampshire and the product search kept coming up with Nordstrom Racks in Massachusetts. I do love a Nordstrom Rack but not when seeking a specific and current product. I called Nordstrom. This company at least puts you through to an actual person. The nice Nordstrom lady also struggled with a location search and finally was able to determine that the nearest brick and mortar non-Rack Nordstrom is an hour and fifteen minutes away in Braintree, MA. In a shopping mall. In the suburbs. Which is about the least appealing reason to drive an hour and fifteen minutes each way that I can imagine.
I started reading online reviews to figure out which size might make sense. I realize I could have just ordered the 40 and 41 and sent back whichever didn't fit, but 1) I don't feel like dealing with that nonsense, I just want to shop for a pair of shoes like a normal person, and B) these shoes are expensive and putting that much money down just to try on sizes, even knowing I can easily return one pair, did not sit well with me.
Reviews were not helpful. Feedback was all over the place regarding these shoes. My friend wears 8.5 which is a 39 for her in Mephistos, which made me think more and more that I would need the 41 as I suspected. Another friend asked at a Walking Store in Pittsburgh and they recommended ordering a 41/10 if I'm a 9.5, because the shoes run short. Too bad the jerk at the brick and mortar store I originally went to didn't want to help me. I would have considered buying a pair from him had I not felt rushed and treated so rudely.
In the end, I placed an order from Nordstrom online for a pair of 10s/41s, and we shall see what happens. I really wish I could go to an actual store and try on different styles and sizes and feel good about my purchase, rather than go through this nonsense. At least with Nordstrom I know I am giving my business to a company with excellent customer service and the best return policy around, but it honestly could not be harder to buy a brand of these shoes.
All I can say is they better kick ass as city-walking shoes.
