Hope Springs Eternal

I love shopping online. All those bright, shiny new items laid out for your viewing pleasure, carefully lit and photographed from a variety of angles. And you can usually tell at a glance whether it comes in your size and whether the merchant still has it in stock. Plus, those shipping costs are fairly negligible. And sometimes they're even waived. So why bother driving to the store to look for something when you can find it in the comfort of your own home with a good search engine and a few mouse clicks. A bird online is worth two in the shopping mall, to paraphrase the old adage. And I am certainly a believer in the satisfaction of e-shopping. 

Yet I've often been puzzled by one of the steps required to place an order on many websites. Take this page from Victoria's Secret, for example. 

 

In order to make those Rocket Dog clogs your own, you have to select your size,...

...then the color you prefer, and then...

 

...the quantity of that particular item you'd like to order.

 

Hmmm. It's a tasty looking shoe. I like the heel particularly. Oh, what the heck. I think I'll take seven.

 

!!!

Followed by...

???

For years now, I've been noticing that some websites permit you to place an order for an unheard of amount of the same item. I mean, I can see maybe getting two of the exact same shoe...or top or sweater or jeans...if you already know they're going to fit perfectly and you're going to wear them to death. But three? Or four? Or seven? 

Wander over to Bloomingdale's. Their web site will let you order as many as six pairs of this Tory Burch beauty.

 

While Gap.com and their sister e-commerce site Piperlime both permit you to stock up on five pairs of your favorite shoes at a time with the click of a mouse.

 

 

But as much I would like to award a grand prize for encouraging unbridled consumerism, unfortunately we have a tie. Take a look at what both Topshop and Urban Outfitters can make happen in your world.

 

 

 

 

 

Holy guacamole! You mean I could own ten pairs of the same shoe in my size that easily? Whoa!

 

. . .

 

Okay, okay. I'm sure there must be a reasonable explanation for it all. My best guess is that these e-commerce sites were set up with a single template for all their product pages. So while being able to choose up to quantities of six or more makes sense when you're looking at stockings or underwear, they didn't bother to revise the template when it's applied to higher end items like designer shoes. Many e-tailers have a simple Add to Bag button that suffices for most purchases. Consider what a pain in the butt it would be to keep going back to the same product page six times if you truly wanted six pairs of sheer knee-highs. The best solution is the empty quantity field that quite a few sites provide. You fill in the amount you'd like to order. And if what you'd like to order is 15 pairs of the size 9 Rachel Comey Finley clog bootie from Anthropologie.com, so be it!

 

 

 

________________________

 

[On my feet today:  Next tan low clog boot]

 

 

Comments

[Tea]

That is hilarious.

[Melissa Krebs]

I've not really thought about it, but that is... odd. I mean, I WILL buy multiples of something I love, but with shoes, I'd at least want another colorway. I'm almost curious to know what actually happens if you select five pairs of size 8 in black and click "order." (Not quite curious enough to actually risk it!) Do they then tell you, "sorry, we only have three in your size"?!!!

On a completely diff note, I stopped in a local Sanita retailer this weekend to see what was there and I was so dismayed by all the delicious clogs, but only in black or in brown. Wha?! One of the things I adore about Sanita is the yummy colors they use. I know the Washington DC market is conservative, but that was ridiculous! Not even a pair in red? Or green?

[Lindsey Cochran]

Ha, ha, ha! I, too, was too timid to enter a huge quantity and send it through.

I hear you on selection. Chicago seems to play it safe fashion-wise, too. Though to be honest, that can vary from store to store. The Nordstrom near where I live has a much more conservative selection than the Nordstrom on Michigan Avenue. What a shame we cant afford to fly out to Santa Monica for our shoe purchases? Or maybe London?

[London Lady]

LOL! So many clogs, so few feet.

[Melissa Krebs]

Okay. Back in the day I was a die-hard Dr. Martens fan, my husband and I DID fly to London to the DM department store (this was pre-web purchasing) and we each came home with six pair! The customs man thought we were hilarious!

[Lindsey Cochran]

And just for the record, I do own two pair of the Bernardo XRAY clogs in burgundy and in blue and am considering getting the truffle colored pair if some windfall project comes my way.