Customer service

Having listened for 20 minutes to a friend’s tale of woe about the non existent customer service that they had received recently from B&Q (sorry, B&Q, maybe it was a bad day) I wanted to make a brief shout out for VivoBarefoot.

Not everyone takes to VivoBarefoot – the shoemakers who believe that the closer you can get to walking barefoot, the better it is for your feet, your posture and your life in general. (They are pretty hot on saving the planet too but that is a separate issue.) Some people find them horribly unprotective and unsupportive – which is just what some of the rest of us love. Having not worn shoes at all until I was two (my mother was determined I was going to have tough feet) I always lean towards barefeet so I am a keen enthusiast. Indeed, I do not wear anything else. However, I do have a bit of an issue with sizing.

I have, essentially, square feet – short and wide so I do need slightly bigger shoes to accommodate their girth. A six when a five and a half would really be big enough.

Around February I bought a pair of hiking boots. They did suggest that you buy slightly bigger than you needed so I havered over going for a seven. But because it was late in the season they didn’t have a seven in the style I wanted so I went for the six.  Bad move. I knew immediately that they were on the tight side but reckoned that maybe I could ‘wear them in’. A couple of painful weeks later I gave up on that idea and returned to the site to look for a seven in a different style.

While browsing I noticed something about ‘100 day returns’.  If your order is not right for you you can return it within 100 days’.  Even if worn? It seems yes. A phone call later I was packing up my now slightly battered size six hiking boots and following the super simple intructions to send them back. Within 48 hours a full refund was confirmed and I was able to order a new pair of size seven boots.

Fast forward to early June. Last summer I had bought a pair of their Ultra III Blooms (made from algae…) and loved them. Mindful of my last experience, I ordered a size seven in white. Wrong again…..  While the hiking boots always come out rather small, the Ultra III Blooms come out rather big! Again, I was not to be beaten and thought I could make them work but after three weeks of flapping around like a duck I rather shamefacely called VivoBarefoot to explain what I had done.

‘No problem!’ The very helpful girl on the phone explained that the Ultra Blooms did come out rather big – and it was fine, I could certainly send them back. So once again I packed up a rather worn and now slightly grubby pair white Ultra III Blooms and sent them off before ordering a pair of size sixes. Once again within days I had a full refund and my new, correctly sized shoes had appeared.

Now I am sure that there is an element of good marketing in this service as I am sure that the number of people who actually return shoes is relatively small – but if it helps their brand along, more power to them. I will certainly try not to have to avail myself of the service again – but I shall certainly continue to buy their shoes – and write about them.

Eat your heart out, B&Q!