I'm sorry I've not been blogging much lately...I've been feeling really out of sorts. Anyhoo, I've been wanting to let rip about some shoe things that have been bugging me. Jeffrey Campbell, the fantabulous "affordable" shoe brand...that is, unless you live in the UK. Let me explain, Office have just received shipment of a fantastic new collection of JC. First thing that p'd me off; seeing my black suede Nightwalks cheaper than what I paid (even with free shipping from Solestruck) (grrr, I think £30+ is an excessive customs charge ParcelForce). The original Nightwalk aren't exactly 'new' now and at the time nobody in the UK had them and I figured wouldn't ever be getting them, so I had no choice but to order from America. I had no idea Office would be stocking them in 2012. Next thing, their Lita's are £120. They retail for just under $160 in the US which converted is around £100. It's annoying because I don't think a shoe costing £120 is 'affordable' which is a word often used to describe JC and although £20 is cheaper than a customs charge as I've experienced, it's still a lot extra to be asking for each shoe.
Case in point, Harvey Nichols who are very reasonably priced for their little selection of JC's. They charge £95 for their plain Lita's, which I think is excellent and at the same time ridiculous to see the exact same pair elsewhere for an extra £25. It's tough though, because you don't know which retailers will get which styles/colours and may have to buy the more expensive one because that's your only option. This leads onto my next point; Office have several 'exclusives' in this new line including the white crochet Lita and black Rockaway. By 'exclusive', I would expect them to be available elsewhere around the world, but within the UK, Office would be the only place to find this particular colourway. Wrong! Both styles can be found on the Harvey Nicks website for £100 each, when they are £120 and £135 respectively from Office. Exclusive my bum! This is particularly annoying, not only that they are sold elsewhere cheaper, but that this retailer is tricking the customer into thinking this is the only place you can get your hands on these. Don't be fooled, still look around-yes, I realise it takes time, as I've done it myself for their "exclusive" Cat Lita's! Haven't found them anywhere else btw.
It's not just Office though. Zalando have also got new stock including silver glitter, brown leather and butterfly Lita's at £164.95 each. What?! They retail for exactly the same price as 'regular' Lita's, why are they priced higher here? Even more ludicrous, the brown distressed leather sells for £120 on the same website! Are plain leather really worth an extra £45? Have they pushed their prices up due to the popularity of the brand? Zalando do offer free shipping on all orders (they'd need to at that price) and Office are currently providing free shipping with all JC's.
I think it's great to see Jeffrey Campbell being recognised in the UK, but I'm not fond of these prices as it makes it very difficult to buy multiple pairs and I grudge paying more than the brand recommended retail price. I would like to see somewhere like ASOS stocking JC because I reckon they would perhaps be more fair with their pricing. My advice is to still shop around, check this is definitely the best price you can get and look into buying from eBay and/or overseas. It doesn't always pay off, in the case of the Nightwalks, but it's still worth researching.
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