Sunday, July 19, 2009

Robert Land Shoes - A Disappointment


(This picture is from the website and not of my actual pair - my pair was an almost black "midnight blue")

I felt I needed to comment here on Robert Land Shoes because I have recently had several disappointments with them. I bought an absolutely stunning pair of his red/black side lacing boots - but after the first day of wearing the stitching ripped open in the side. I returned them asking for a replacement but was simply sent a "repaired" pair. Given the fact that I had paid full price for these boots and that they clearly were barely worn I felt that I should have been given a replacement. Well, I didn't want to continue to complain, so I accepted them.

Now . . . months later, I decided to give Robert Land a second chance because I continue to hear good things about them. So, I bought the blue and black side lacing and the American walking shoe. Wanted to make sure I bought the correct size, I completed the sizing worksheet and sent it to Robert Land. He suggested a 7-1/2 so that's what I ordered.

Unfortunately, I was greatly disappointed once again. The blue and black boot that looked bright blue and black on the web site was actually such a dark blue I first thought it was black! The American walking boot was also constructed in such a way that the space between the instep and the ankle was so baggy it actually formed a sort of a bubble when wearing the boot and was uncomfortable because it was so loose. Continuing my disappointment, the sole of both styles of boot protrude about 1/4 inch beyond the toe which both looks strange and would probably cause me to trip wearing them. And the 7-1/2 was waaayyy too big! I needed to go down at least a half size.

To add insult to injury in all of this, Robert Land actually draws from a Canadian bank (I know he has both a NY and Canadian address) but the payment was in American dollars. When I paid via PayPal, the Canadian bank that drew the payment caused my credit card company to charge me a foreign exchange fee of $9. This was both unexpected and not clearly outlined (that I remember) on their page.

So . . . I have sent the two pair of shoes back expecting a refund for the blue pair and a new pair of the American walking boot IF the toe and "baggy" ankle problem can be solved. I am hoping I will eventually be happy about this whole transaction . . .

I wish I had taken pictures of the boots before I sent them back! I was so frustrated I didn't think about it. :(

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I bought a pair of the same shoes in cream and black...after a couple of wearing (9 to be exact) the cream leather at the toe began pulling away. I emailed them and within a month had a replacement pair that is wearing beautifully. My experience has been very good with this company. I am now getting ready to order a solid black pair of the same shoe!

Rebecca said...

So glad they worked out for you! They are beautiful shoes when they work. Hopefully my experience was just a fluke. =)

Anonymous said...

ROBERT LAND HISTORIC SHOES (of Canada) is total a**-h*le to deal with. Just read the condescending things he puts on his website and changes it often. He never replies when you're ready to place an order, he is not flexible, and makes errors and other low quality problems. He stocks too many of the mediocre pairs that he provides for all the clone-market of in-the-box-thinkers and whatever fits the bill. Never go to him for custom work ever, he'll never reply to you until you keep pestering him from other email accounts, and still he'll eventually figure out your tactics. He's never on-time and wakes much longer than he claims. He would rather live a simple life, where the customer is never right, he will refuse money and blacklist.

Yet there are too many b*tt-kissers that will praise his products, just as common gullible morons will do, just to support their local source or wherever close. I live within the same range as him and all the colonial reenactors wear his products and just don't know any better (you can tell by how they dress, they all look the same and never had an original thought in their entire lives, same sloppy look).

His history of how he started can be translated to "I just didn't get along with anyone, so I became my own boss AND I'M GONNA KEEP IT THAT WAY" and his grammar is sometimes poor, modern slang and lazy shortcuts fit for this millennial generation, but he's old enough to have been in business since the 1990s.

ERRORS INCLUDE: stitching loosely, stitching over the lines where it doesn't belong, selecting options you never asked for but asked against, and many many more. Sure I received decent pairs of his footwear (anonymous order I will not give details on) but all the issues, I guess you get what you paid for.

His prices are almost alright, but his competitors cost a whole lot more, WHAT DO WE DO??? In this economic recession, his prices are actually considered "expensive" but I've seen worse. So ever pair I get from him, I had to have it reinforced and repaired in various modification just to get it right, which wasn't overly horrible, just a disappointment because there's many things that cannot be changed and you're stuck with it! Perhaps I changed my mind about what I asked for, so I got somewhat lucky, and we should never ever base any order on LUCK. Would you?

If you're thinking of ordering from ROBERT LAND, and you're an American,....think again! Keep searching for a different source (buy American) before he's ROBBED-OUR-LAND!!!!!!! Get it?????

Steve Crosby said...

Just responding to the Anonymous guy who ranted on about the poor quality of Robert Land shoes: you mention how condescending he is and how poor his grammar is? Seriously? Have you read your own comment, Buddy? You take the cake in both categories.

Speaking as one guy who obviously doesn't know any better but to think inside the box, and dresses like everybody else because, well, I'm a common gullible moron, I can unequivocally say that his shoes worked great for me. I do have to replace the one pair of his shoes that I've had FOR 16 YEARS!!!! because they got wet and I put them too close to the campfire drying them out and scorched them. That pair fit me perfectly the first time I wore them and I've had them resoled only twice in that entire time and they still look good. Comfortable as hell!

So Anonymous, you can complain about his quality all you want, and you might be right on the money on all your points, but watch out for simply sounding like a complete hypocrite when you go on a tear about other people and won't even use your own name. You're the one sounding like the moron!