ShoeDazzle: Dazzling Business Venture or Business Dud?

Like Paris Hilton, Kim Kardashian is famous for being famous. She was sprung into the spotlight thanks to an amateur sex tape scandal combined with her exotic looks and a notoriously large rear-end. And both of these west coast socialites turned their good fortune fame into lucrative entrepreneurial careers.

Kim Kardashian’s latest business venture is ShoeDazzle.com; a personal shoe shopping service that specifically caters to stylish footwear without having to pay an arm and a leg. Kim Kardashian and her fashion experts refer to ShoeDazzle as a monthly membership society.Every month for $39 you will receive a pair of shoes.

How it works: Once you’ve taken the personal fashion survey which asks questions such as “Of the following, who do you think is dressed better?” and “Which shoe do you like better?” then it gives three runway snapshots or images of shoes to choose from. They also survey your favorite brands and celebrity styles. Five to seven business days later you will receive an email with 5 shoes hand picked by ShoeDazzle stylists based off of your survey results. From here you have two options: you can pick one of the 5 choices, all shoes cost $39, or if none of their selection fits with your personal style you can select “skip a month” and you won’t be charged for that month. This cycle of shoe selections occurs on the 1^st of the month, on a monthly basis, kind of a more modernized version of a CD or Book of the month club except its stylish shoes. Please note that you do not return the shoes after a month, the shoes are yours to wear into the ground.

Having trouble keeping up? Or are you still waiting for the catch before you make your own critique? As far as I can tell there is no catch unless you sign up and forget about your subscription and don’t either select a shoe or skip the month then you would be charged for that month and not be sent a pair of shoes.

I have mixed feelings about this website. I must admit, I do have a weakness for beautiful designer shoes. But Pour la Victoire or L.A.M.B. heels are not meant to be worn around Scorekeepers, Rick’s or other college bars. It’s just not practical; they would be stained and ruined after a weekend of bar hopping. Not to mention how brutal Michigan winters are on heels, the combination of snow and salt can forever stain a pair of heels. But stylish shoes that only cost me $39? I wouldn’t be heart broken if I was forced to throw them out after a season.

Just like fashion and style in general, I figure shoppers will respond subjectively to this new shoe shopping concept. The only negatives that stand out to me is that I never have been a fan of ordering shoes online in fear of the hassle of having them not fit and having to send them back. Also, if you don’t like the 5 initial shoe selections or the second round of 5 pairs of shoes the style experts picked for you, you won’t be charged for that month but you still have to wait an entire month to get a new round of shoes to choose from.

My roommate, Jamie, a fellow senior girl in college, introduced me to ShoeDazzle. She has been a member for three month and has received three pairs of heels. She feels that it is "an easy and convenient way to get great shoes at a competitive price." She has had to return a pair of shoes because the heels didn't fit correctly, however she commented that "ShoeDazzle prepaid for my shipping, so I had a new pair of heels within 10 days of me shipping back my unwanted pair of heels."

So to be perfectly clear, if you’re a shoe snob and are looking for the highest quality material, don’t bother replacing your Bloomingdales bookmark with ShoeDazzle. Kardashian’s shoe society is the place for smart shoppers that are seeking the latest trends without the designer price tag. The only other place you'll have luck finding inexpensive "stylish" shoes for $39 is at a BOGO sale at Payless.