Narrow feet

MarkB_MI

Well-known Member
Location
Motown USA
I have narrow feet; I need a B width shoe to get a decent fit. Anyone with narrow feet knows that most shoe stores stopped stocking narrow widths back in the eighties. So it's a real pain to get shoes or boots that fit.

For work boots, I buy Red Wings. But they're always special order.

It used to be fairly easy to get narrow width hiking boots, but most makers have discontinued them. Danner hasn't made narrow widths for years. Anymore, it seems that Vasque (owned by Red Wing) is the only brand that comes in a narrow width. They make only one style in a narrow width, and only one color in that style.

New Balance has a few tennis shoe styles in narrow, but again they're special order.

I used to be able to buy narrow Dunham brand dress shoes and casual shoes at the New Balance store, but they quit carrying them. Now I have to order Dunhams on-line from Rockport.

So anyway, I'm curious where other folks with narrow feet go for shoes. Or do you just put up with shoes that don't fit?
 
I'm on the opposite end, I have to get mine in a wide otherwise they are too tight. I go to a speciality workwear store to order mine. I have been getting Timberland Pro the last several pairs.
 
Mark,

Have you ever tried the Mason Shoe Company? I don't have narrow feet so I have no experience with that particular factor, but I know that Mason offers a full range of widths for their shoes. I've been buying from them for about 60 years. I get junk mail from them at least weekly, but when I need new shoes I actually read their ads.

Good luck finding what you need.

Tom in TN
 
I have some Oboz hiking boots, I just love them, and I think they make some narrower sizes. They were recommended to me by my podiatrist because I had plantar facetious, and they helped to cure the problem. They're kind of expensive, but if your buying Redwings your used to high prices.
 
Same problem! I look at New Balance on line and they have a few in narrow. LL Bean also has some narrow, you have to look through all their shoes on line.
 
I have the same problem, but with A width. I have worn Red Wing work boots for 40 plus years. Style 1155. Ten to fifteen years ago they stop making the A width, had the local store do a search for A width in the US, found 5 pairs in stock at several stores. I ordered all 5 pairs and put in the closet, I have used all 5 pair and now switched to B width, and getting a long ok. Also have New Balance shoes.
 
> I have the same problem, but with A width. I have worn Red Wing work boots for 40 plus years. Style 1155. Ten to fifteen years ago they stop making the A width, had the local store do a search for A width in the US, found 5 pairs in stock at several stores.

Back around 1980, I went into a Red Wing store looking for a pair of 10.5Bs. They didn't have the B width in stock, but they had a pair of 11As, and I bought them. They fit just fine. I now wear 11Bs. And it's hard to believe that stores actually used to stock A-width boots.
 
> Same problem! I look at New Balance on line and they have a few in narrow. LL Bean also has some narrow, you have to look through all their shoes on line.

I'll keep L. L. Bean in mind the next time I'm shopping for shoes or boots. They do have quality products.
 
> I have some Oboz hiking boots, I just love them, and I think they make some narrower sizes. They were recommended to me by my podiatrist because I had plantar facetious, and they helped to cure the problem. They're kind of expensive, but if your buying Redwings your used to high prices.

I think you posted about Oboz a few weeks back. Somebody did, anyway, and I remember checking to see if they had any narrows. Alas, only medium and wide widths. I just double-checked and don't see anything narrow on their site. Maybe I'll drop them a note and ask if they could do a run of narrow width boots.
 
> Have you ever tried the Mason Shoe Company?

No, I haven't, but I remember back in the day they ran ads in all the magazines and tabloids. I guess the memory of those old ads kind of puts me off, maybe I should at least give them a chance.
 
> I'm on the opposite end, I have to get mine in a wide otherwise they are too tight. I go to a speciality workwear store to order mine. I have been getting Timberland Pro the last several pairs.

Thanks, but it doesn't look like Timberland makes anything in narrow widths.
 
I have been buying Thorogood boots. They have them in 12 B and they hold up very well. I tried mason but was not impressed.
 
I'm a size 16 so my options are limited too, but in the other direction. I buy all of my shoes on eBay, I can search for the size I need and there are usually a few choices in whatever kind of thing I'm looking for. I try to remember to check Red Wing boots in my size from time to time, sometimes I have been lucky and gotten a demo pair for well under $100 that are new, but have been sitting around a store somewhere for a while.
 
MarkB, Do you have any Amish owned shoe stores in your area? I have worn Red Wings for over 40yrs and the Amish store in my area keep B width in stock. In some shoes I can get by with a c width.
 
The Red Wing factory was on main street in Red Wing Minnesota for years, i think they had a fire and other problems [not financial] in the late 80's others who live closer than i, would no moor,but i wear a D, so never had a problem!
 
> MarkB, Do you have any Amish owned shoe stores in your area? I have worn Red Wings for over 40yrs and the Amish store in my area keep B width in stock.

No Amish-owned shoe stores around here that I'm aware of. But there are plenty of Red Wing franchises; I go in, order what I need and Red Wing ships it to my house. Sometimes they send the correct size, sometimes not.
 
> I have been buying Thorogood boots. They have them in 12 B and they hold up very well.

Thanks for the tip. I hadn't heard of Thorogood, but I see they do make a few styles in narrow widths.
 
> For work boots have you found any 12-1/2 in womens?
> Supposedly egual to mens 11B.

Hmm. According to New Balance, the widths are the same between men's and women's shoe sizes.

"Widths remain the same during conversion: if you wear a women's D width, you will also wear a men's D width."
convert womens shoe size to mens
 
(quoted from post at 08:24:02 07/29/20) > For work boots have you found any 12-1/2 in womens?
> Supposedly egual to mens 11B.

Hmm. According to New Balance, the widths are the same between men's and women's shoe sizes.

"Widths remain the same during conversion: if you wear a women's D width, you will also wear a men's D width."
convert womens shoe size to mens

True, but there might be a better chance of finding 12.5B womens than 11B mens work boots or shoes.

I am also a B width and when shopping for work boots, most women sizes are actually too narrow.
This is at wallyfart and generic off the shelf brands.
Most workboots are undicernable between mens and womens.
 

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