Small shoe sizes being phased out

[writergal28]

According to this Huffington Post article, many brands are phasing out smaller shoe sizes. Since size 5 and 5 1/2 and in some cases, even size 6 are no longer being offered, should small-footed adult women really be limited to the kids' department? Is it fair for salespeople to direct adults to the kids' section to begin with?

 

[ambreit]

how are small footed women going to buy heels or adult looking shoes? doesn't make sense.

 

[leyla m.]

it is true though...
most brands i buy do not offer a 35 or 35.5 whereas i have customers who request that size but just like a size 42. even a 41 is rarely offered so i feel for those ladies with dare i say "extreme" sizing!

 

[ambreit]

you are so right....not fair for "little" or "big" feet (of course, all things being relative ).

 

[Meg]

well I would say that generally speaking, women's feet size is getting larger but it's already quite difficult for small footed women to find shoes, I can't imagine it's going to get easier.

 

[Feline]

People come in all shapes and sizes and manufacturers should take that into account. Fair enough to make more quantities of so-called 'average' sizes, but smaller/bigger sizes should be available as there is a market for them.

 

[from: sophia]

My poor mom she has to search for shoes as it is. I am so lucky that I am so average.

 

[snowinmoscow]

I work in a shoe store and the size range we stock is 36-41, and we do get quite a few requests from women for a size 35 or 42. I do feel bad having to turn them away but I guess many companies must be deterred from producing such sizes if it means they're operating at a loss.

 

[Milada]

Ah what's the conversion from European sizes to American ones? I'm lucky I'm so average, about an 8.

 

[Tiffany7]

I wear like a 4 or a 4 1/2 US. Ive NEVER been able to find a nice pump cheap or expensive that wasnt a slingback EVER!! SUCKS! It took me years to find a ballet flat that fit & then it was cheap Target ones size 5 but ran small & I put a heel thing in to make it a tighter fit but other then that no regular shoes with a heel for me unless its a sneaker or something else I can wear a sock with.

 

[MissyJG]

^4?! How tall are you? I don't think brands ever make shoes that size for adult women. I feel bad for you not being able to buy gorgeous shoes most of the time..One of my friends has a 5/5.5 and she already has a hard time finding nice shoes..

 

[pucci_mama]

I simply can't believe that they decide to phase out those shoe sizes when there is obviously a market for it!!!!!

I am a US size 5 and I can hardly ever find my size in a style that I like!

 

[Hanne]

hm.. I must say that I would think with the growing middleclass in China that there would be a growing interest in producing luxury shoes in the smaller sizes
(I'm presuming that since the average Chinese female is smaller than their European and American counterparts that their feet on average would be smaller as well.. not that I have any foundation for this..)

 

[Bella_Lass334]

I barely fit a 5 1/2 and I've never been able to find heels that fit here in the US, unless it's a store run by Asians or Mexicans. This past month, I went to Mexico and was delighted that most of the shoes I wanted actually came in my size!!! I stocked up, lol.

 

[fashionista-ta]

I wear like a 4 or a 4 1/2 US. Ive NEVER been able to find a nice pump cheap or expensive that wasnt a slingback EVER!! SUCKS! It took me years to find a ballet flat that fit & then it was cheap Target ones size 5 but ran small & I put a heel thing in to make it a tighter fit but other then that no regular shoes with a heel for me unless its a sneaker or something else I can wear a sock with.

I would have thought a ballet would be easy to find ... do girl's shoes not work?

At least in the larger sizes you have the transgender market on your side

I wear an 8, I'm sure among the very most common sizes, so the only problem I encounter is I better get there fast, no thinking I'm going to find it on sale ... but that's how I work anyway. I have looked at custom work before just to get the exact color/style I wanted, but I ended up not doing it because it's slow/expensive and I found something that would work in the meantime. Btw we have a custom footwear thread ...

I know actresses with tiny feet sometimes wear vintage shoes, but I've also read that quality is bad and due to the age of the shoe they'll often fall apart on the first wearing (I guess the glue is shot ). Presumably this is something you could learn to judge ... but I've always felt that of all the things you could buy second-hand, shoes were just about the worst because if they've been worn, they've molded to the other person's foot.

 

[MissyJG]

hm.. I must say that I would think with the growing middleclass in China that there would be a growing interest in producing luxury shoes in the smaller sizes
(I'm presuming that since the average Chinese female is smaller than their European and American counterparts that their feet on average would be smaller as well.. not that I have any foundation for this..)

What you said is pretty much true. My mom has a size 10 and when we go to Asia, some countries there don't even sell bigger than a US 8. lol.

 

[Tiffany7]

^4?! How tall are you? I don't think brands ever make shoes that size for adult women. I feel bad for you not being able to buy gorgeous shoes most of the time..One of my friends has a 5/5.5 and she already has a hard time finding nice shoes..

Im 5 ft.
Also to the question about girls shoes... yeah they work but its hard to find some that dont have a childish look to them. Thankfully I can wear a sling back heel in a 5 if its adjustable but sometimes I just yearn for a nice pump... I always have. There is a place online that makes 4's & smaller but they are ugly with thick heels. Theres no place here to buy vintage. I did buy on ebay vintage once... they were lovely & just fit but hurt like hell lol so thats difficult too not being able to try on. *sigh*

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ If I were you I'd be very tempted to plan my vacations somewhere I could shop for shoes

 

[writergal28]

^4?! How tall are you? I don't think brands ever make shoes that size for adult women. I feel bad for you not being able to buy gorgeous shoes most of the time..One of my friends has a 5/5.5 and she already has a hard time finding nice shoes..

Some Stuart Weitzman shoes go down to a 4 or 4 1/2.

 

[Legyviel]

I guess I'm lucky to be a 39 then. Unless it's a sale and most popular size gets sold out quicker...