FootSmart

Full review
Considering that your feet are crucial for traversing life’s winding roads, it’s surprising how much we take them for granted, or abuse them with neglect and ill-fitting shoes. Recently, while relaxing in front of the television—barefoot and comfy—my wife looked down sympathetically at my bare feet and proclaimed that they looked “sad.” Startled, I looked down at them myself, and while I wouldn’t exactly call them sad, I had to admit they didn’t seem especially cheery either. I have dry skin overall, and though my diabetes is under control, the condition can adversely affect the skin in general, and the feet in particular.

In addition to dry skin, my wider-than-average feet, and larger-than-average calves make it a challenge to find comfortable socks that don’t bind or cut into my skin. So that meant I needed to locate a retailer that offers products that would help to solve both problems.

A generic Google search for “foot care products” yielded an assortment of possible websites to visit. I selected the first one I saw—FootSmart.com.

The Website

The FootSmart.com home page is almost sterile in design—white/gray/blue colors, sensible categories, and no distracting banners. You feel ready to get down to business immediately. Currently, there is one price shipping—$4.95—on any size order. The $4.95 shipping price is displayed prominently on the home page, so there’s no hunting around the site trying to figure out how much it’s going to cost to get your purchases home. That’s a definite plus and made me want to hang around to give the site a try.

They Have Shoes

The site offers leading brands of shoes, such as Hush Puppies, New Balance (my personal favorite), Easy Spirit, and Propét. They boast over 250 styles of wide width shoes for men and women.

In addition, there is a “Shoe Finder” that allows you to find shoes using five criteria: Men/Women, Size, Width, Prices, and Category. Since I didn’t need shoes, I went on to the next category….

Socks/Hosiery

Clicking on “Men’s Socks” took me directly to a page with a graphic that read: “Soothing, non-binding relief for diabetic feet.” How perfect is that?! I clicked on the graphic and was taken to a product page with 22 different styles of diabetic socks. Each item had a product description page that provided more details related to the features, colors, sizes, benefits, recommendations, care, and yarn content.

I selected two different seamless styles at $8.95/pair. Each time I made my selection, a little icon appeared with a green checkmark indicating that the item was “in stock.” My plan is to try them both out, and order more if I’m satisfied with the quality. Next stop: some sort of cream or balm to soften and hydrate my parched tootsies…

Foot Health

The subcategories under “Foot Health” include: Supports/Insoles, Foot Odor/Hygiene, Corns/Calluses, and Sensitive Feet/Diabetic. From there, I selected “Skin Care” and found a product list of 10 different creams and lotions specifically formulated for dry, cracked feet. Four of the options were highlighted as a “top choice” so I figured that other customers must have had good experiences in using them. I selected the “Podiatrist’s Secret” 8-ounce cream special: Buy 2 at $19.90 and Get 1 Free. From there, it was simply a matter of adding it to my cart and completing the self-explanatory check-out process.

FootSmart Guarantee

Once I finished my checkout, I did explore the rest of the site for future reference. FootSmart apparently offers a catalog which you can request, free of charge. Their “Hassle-Free” Returns/Exchanges policy is backed by a so-called 100% guarantee. That is, if you’re not completely satisfied with your purchase, they allow you to return it within one year. It can be for any reason, but the caveat is that shoes have to be returned in original, unworn condition in the original box. This strikes me as insincere to say the least. I don’t see how you would know if you were completely satisfied with a pair shoes unless you had an opportunity to actually wear them. So for shoe purchases, I wouldn’t consider the guarantee to be anywhere near 100%, since if you wear them—even once—you can’t return them.

Other Categories

There are more than shoes, socks, and creams at FootSmart.com. You’ll find solutions for Lower Body Health: arthritis, back care, circulation, massage and exercise and more. Head over to the Clearance Center to save 20% to 60% on products in all categories. And for a complete change of pace, visit the “Smarter Body” section, where you’ll find Comfort Apparel, Bedding & Bath, Intimate Apparel, Body/Skin Care, Braces & Supports, and more.

Final Impressions

I received the confirmation email as expected, and I was charged the $4.95 for standard delivery. The email included a special coupon code for free shipping on my next online order of $50 or more within the next 30 days. My order shipped the next day, and I received it a few days after that. It was a no-frills, no problems transaction overall, and I’m looking forward to giving my “sad” feet a reason to smile.