Dearest shoe shops, we need to have a chat.
Over the years I have spent many hours and dollars in you, lusting over the latest seasons styles, but lately I have noticed a bit of a troubling trend.
With money earmarked for shoes burning a hole in my pocket, I hit the shops hoping to find a new pair of boots, or maybe a wedge sandal, but in almost every store there is a serious lack of shoes sized 10 and above. Even online the shoes that are most often listed as out of stock are a 10. Now I don’t want to say that is sizeist, but if the shoe fits… well you’re lucky because I cannot find any that do!
Admittedly, I do have a pretty big foot. I can occasionally squeeze into a 9, but a double-digit size is the best bet for me.
However, on a recent shoe-shopping expedition when I asked for a size 10 or 11, I was met with many apologetic statements like, “sorry, we actually don’t carry those above a 10”, or “we don’t have any of that size left in stock”. I don’t want to be dramatic but it is heartbreaking how many pairs of gorgeous shoes have gone un-purchased because they never come in my size.
LISTEN: Stylist Sarah Elizabeth Turner on how to turn your wardrobe around.
Now before you break out your tiny violins for me and my huge feet, there is something you need to know. As we get older, our foot size can only increase.
According to the College of Podiatry in the UK, our feet are on average two sizes bigger than they were in the 1970s, and statistics from the American National Shoe Retailers Association show the bigger sizes are selling out much quicker than they were 25 years ago. Also, factors like height, weight gain and pregnancy all contribute to changes in foot size, with both men’s and women’s feet continuing to grow and change in shape for their entire lives. So, just because you are one of the #blessed size 7s now, it does not mean your foot won’t get bigger later in life.
