urban_nomad

Hi guys. I'm maybe in the minority here, but I'm cursed with wide feet and not in a small size either. I'm a size 40-41 [European] or a 9-10 [U.S.]. So, I usually face great difficulty in finding anything to slip my baby monsters into. I'll be traveling to Paris in the summer and I was wondering if anyone can recommend any stores there that cater to wide feet or stock wide footwear. And I'm not talking about sexy 3-inch spike-heeled, pointy-toed pumps; or exotic platforms or wedges (I am not that ambitious! I have learnt to accept that I'll probably never find such beautiful shoes to fit my big, flat, peasant feet), I'm just looking for stylish sneakers/slides/sandals (preferably with some color in them; I have this fetish with wildly colored footwear, to compensate for the lack of variety in the "styles" I own). I have tried the pagesjaunes.fr under the "extremely large size shoes" category and all I got was BOUTIQUE SACAPUCE [sacapuce.fr] which has a very limited and dull-looking wide-shoes collection, and SAGONE [sagone-chaussures.com] which has an amazing collection but no indication of width of footwear—if they're standard width I'm bummed---does anyone know?. That was all I got. I read on the boards about a MEPHISTO store in Paris [http://www.mephisto-paris.net/boutique.html] (the shopkeeper standing in the doorway looks hot is he French? lol). Anyways, they have an OK collection but again no mention of widths. I did a google search and I really like what I saw on the CAMPER website [camper.com], their store locater lists stores in Paris. Does anyone know if they carry wide sizes? I e-mailed SAGONE, MEPHISTO, and CAMPER asking for widths and haven't received any replies yet. I would really appreciate any feedback on this. Cheers, BigFoot in a Narrow-footed World.

urban_nomad

ttt

jules4je7

Check out www.sierratradingpost.com They have discounted top brand shoes (mephistos and others), and I believe they also have a special section for w-i-d-e feet.

Good luck, I've got some big feet myself (same as you) and it's always fun to go shoe shopping, esp. when you want to find something comfy.

Jules

SharonG

I have wide feet as well. Five years ago I was able to get two pairs of shoes at Mephisto in Paris. This past March I found that some styles of Arche fit me as well and I got two very stylish pairs there. I went to the one at Place Madeleine. The salesgirl was very nice and knew just which ones would work for me.

SharonG

I forgot to mention that the Arche shoes are wildly colored. One is petunia (kind of a dark dark pinkish red) and the other is spring green so you should be very happy there. My friend got a pair of lavender sandals that are gorgeous.

urban_nomad

Thanks Jules for the link to the online shoe store. I couldn't find the Wide section you mentioned and I tried typing "wide" in their search engine but got no results. I checked out their shoes and they sure do look wide and comfy as you said. The good thing is that they have international shipping, which is a big plus for me since I don't stay too long in one place. But if you ask me I still prefer shoe-shopping in stores over ordering online. It's not the same as clothes where you can "deal" with a slightly smaller/larger size with body-shapers, belts, etc. Shoes have to be a perfect fit otherwise they're no good (I get too lazy to return items I don't like). I'll wait until I get back from Paris with empty bags and no new shoes to order from the website (which is the most likely scenario). Thanks for providing me with a shopping back-upļ

Don't you just hate how wide feet are soo "under-represented" in the shoe market? At least with clothes plus size women, like myself, are starting to get (((some))) selection nowadays. But with shoes it's like you've got only two choices, period: 1) You either head to the men's section of Foot Lockers/Athletes World and buy sneakers that can pass for unisex whilst feeling odd and embarrassed as you ask the salesperson for your size from the MEN'S section, OR 2) you go to Payless Shoes and be grateful that something fits even if it's ugly and out-dated. These are the only available options in Canada. I don't know about where you are. But from where I stand, the situation is sad sad sad.

onthegogo

I have to wear orthodics...so mostly the shoes have to be listed as wide...and most not very nice looking either! Have you tried www.zappos.com? They carry many brands and have good ratings and have a 'wide' section. I haven't ordered anything yet (I've got an order in for a pair of Rockport Walking Shoes that they will notify me of when my size comes in)... but have a good reputation. Not sure if they ship internationally. So, add me to the list of women who would like to see alot more choice in 'wide' shoes! We're going to Paris too in July and will look for shoes too.

crefloors

I order from zappos AND shoebuy.com. zappos has the best service and they also have customer comments about the shoes..it helps in selection. I luckily have not had to return shoes I've ordered, but zappos return policy is very good if you need it. There are amazingly a lot of companies that make large and wide width shoes but the stores just don't stock them.

urban_nomad

I'm very grateful for your recommendations Sharon! I hadn't heard about Arche before and now it's on my "Paris Shopping List". I googled their website [arche-shoes.fr] and they have such gorgeous sandals! Of course I drooled over the petunia & spring green, which I think I saw on the website. I just hope they have them in size 40-41. I checked the address on [pagesjaunes.fr] and it's 11 bd Madeleine 75001 PARIS 01 40 15 91 85/ 01 40 15 93 25. Does that sound right? Much Obliged

Ralstonlan

Try DesignerShoes.com They have up to size 15 and double wide widths. Also Talbots.com has a selecton of wide width shoes.

Madison

Shoe department in Galleries Lafayette. I know for a fact that they carry the size you mentioned. Last year when I went to Paris the weather turned warm and all I had were closed toe shoes. I bought a darling pair of Arche sandals there. They were comfortable and had a lot of support.

stardust

As for shoe size, I can assure you that 40-41 are perfectly normal, at least in Belgium. All standard shoes go till 41 here. Some even till 42. Now as for width, my feet are quite wide as well (but luckily I can usually solve it by buying a size 41 instead of a 40). How about brands like Birkenstock and Scholl? They make orthopedic shoes, but their sandals in all kinds of spring and summer colours are really fashionable !!! Some Camper shoes are quite wide, and they are definitely trendy !!!

sandypaws3

Here's the Mephisto shoe store that my husband and I shopped at. You might want to fax them your question about wide shoes. There has always been someone there who can speak English, so it might be easier for you to find out what you need to know. The shop is very near boulevard Saint Germain, so it's easy to get to:

Mephisto Chaussures
78 RUE DES SAINTS PERES 75007
tel: 01 45 44 03 04
fax : 01 45 44 80 58

Sandy

sandypaws3

This is not in Paris, but when you get back and want to order some shoes, you might want to try www.zappos.com. They have wide shoes... I just checked, and I have bought shoes from them before. They're great! If they don't fit, just drop them off at UPS or the Post Office, and you can even print up a shipping label on your printer. They'll send you another pair very quickly.

Sandy

Christina

I wear a size 9 or 9-1/2 US shoe, although not wide, and while I can buy shoes in Paris, there is not as good a selection at that size. It's the same thing in the US, actually, although better than in Paris (you think wide is bad, trying buying half sizes over size 8 or so--for some reason, shoe manufacturers think it's okay to have half sizes for smaller feet but not larger). It's really difficult for me to buy 9-1/2 which is my best size, usually.

I wouldn't go to Paris to buy large, wide shoes, it's just not a good market for that. They certainly don't specialize in it. Although I can see if for a French brand you think would be cheaper there (like Arche), but not regular everyday shoes.

Anyway, I don't know a large shoe shop in Paris, although there are a lot more large size clothing boutiques are around now, from what I've seen. I have bought from Zappos and they are great as the returns are free, so it really is no risk.

They have a lot of wide-width ladies shoes in shops where I live, actually, sometimes they have more of those in my size than regular width. I live in a multi-ethnic neighborhood (1/3 white, 1/3 black, 1/3 Hispanic), though, I know that's why. I have trouble getting a 9-1/2 regular width sometimes, as they seem to think any larger size must be wide (my mom had it worse, as she wore 9-1/2 narrow).

urban_nomad

Yes, of course Onthegogo I have day-dreamt about ordering from Zappos on several occasions and every once in a while I visit their website, stare at the new additions, and feel sorry for myself. You see I don't live in the U.S. and Zappos doesn't offer international shipping. So I'm out of luck. I think they have the largest wide shoes collection online and off!

Good Luck in planning your Paris trip Onthegogo. We so far seem to have test-driven two shoe stores that cater to wide feet in Paris:

1. Mephisto (there are a bunch of locations in pagesjaunes.fr) I wonder which store has the "largest" collection of women's wide shoes?

2. Arche (Sharon says the store at 11 bd Madeleine has friendly salespersons, that's always a plus.)

Cheers

DonTopaz

I have very wide feet (depending on the shoe, typically need either a 3E or 5E).

Camper has several styles that fit me brilliantly, and they're my preferred shoe brand. The styles that are best are sneaker styles that either have very wide soles, or have extremely soft leather with an elasticized tongue. Although I called them sneaker style, the shoes are extremely good looking. I haven't shopped for women's shoes, but the Camper women's line is similar to the men's.

A very good Camper store in Paris is at the Croix Rouge intersection in the 6ieme, at the corner of rue du Cherche-Midi and rue du Vieux Colombe (metro: St Sulpice). The big department stores also carry Camper shoes, but the selection at the Camper store is infinitely better.

SharonG

Yes, that's the right Arche store. I usually wear an 8 wide but they seemed to have a wide (no pun intended) range of styles. And I wear orthotics so I share your pain. Birkinstocks are usually good bets for me too and Finn Comforts but they are often hard to find. Hey, Big Wide Feet Girls Unite!

urban_nomad

Thank you Ralstonlan for the websites.
Designershoes.com has a great selection but as an International Customer I have to go through a lot of trouble in order to place an order. This is from the website:
Our "fraud prevention" protocols now require that all new international customers to either:
„X Fax legible copies of the front and back sides of your credit card; a copy of your drivers license or passport with billing address and photo; name, address and phone number of employer company. Our fax number is: 617-247-7003
„X Pay in advance via bank wire. To request international bank wire transfer procedures please email [email protected].

Maybe it is me but this sounds too complicated for a pair of sandals. Too much personal information sent in an unencrypted form. This is probably the same paperwork I will go through in order to apply for a Schengen Visa lol.
Talbots.com has a huge collection! I will add it to my back-up shoe shopping list in case I return empty-handed (rather bare-foot) from Paris.

urban_nomad

Thank you Ralstonlan for the websites.

Designershoes.com has a great selection but as an International Customer I have to go through a lot of trouble in order to place an order. This is from the website:

Our "fraud prevention" protocols now require that all new international customers to either:
„X Fax legible copies of the front and back sides of your credit card; a copy of your drivers license or passport with billing address and photo; name, address and phone number of employer company. Our fax number is: 617-247-7003
„X Pay in advance via bank wire. To request international bank wire transfer procedures please email [email protected].

Maybe it is me but this sounds too complicated for a pair of sandals. Too much personal information sent in an unencrypted form. This is probably the same paperwork I will go through in order to apply for a Schengen Visa lol.

Talbots.com has a huge collection! I will add it to my back-up shoe shopping list in case I return empty-handed (rather bare-foot) from Paris.