"I bought a pair of shoes a few weeks back and the website offered a 15% to be given at check out. When I checked out the discount did not appear. I called their customer service and was told they are unable to generate a credit he had to forward my request to the corporate office (well then how do you consider yourself customer service?). It has been 4 days and I've sent 3 emails and called without any communication or response. Clearly, their customer service and online marketing are not a priority and is unprofessional to say the least."

"So I placed an order for a gift for my wife, paid a little extra to get it here sooner, got the order confirmation email and waited for it arrive. At 5PM on the day it was supposed to be delivered, I received an email notifying me that my order had been canceled due to there being no inventory when I placed my order. This was 10 days after I placed the order. They offered me a whopping 20% off my next order. Bump that! I'm not doing business with Planet Shoes anymore. It shouldn't take you that long to notify a customer of a problem with their order. Bad form, guys. Don't buy stuff from this site."

"I've had two pair of planet shoes and had the heel collapse on both pairs. Not very durable considering the price you pay."

"Seemed like a great site with great deals with the products I wanted to purchase but dealing with them was a pain!!! They made a mistake on my order...I hate writing huge long reviews explaining all the details but lets say I bought boots, they shipped my boots to some one else and charged me for them. Took them a week to email me back after I called twice!!!! Not worth dealing with them, Ill buy my boots elsewhere because they CAN NOT be trusted."

"I recently purched a pair of Laredo Ryan boots for my daughter who was to have them for a wedding, when the first pair came the zipper broke the first time she tried them on. They were returned and a new pair came two days prior to the wedding. When she tried them on the same thing happened, so needles to say she did not have a pair of boots for the wedding. We were so disappointed. I would not reccomend the zip up boots for anyone, we will not be buying a pair ever again. As for the customer service it was good, they were very polite and helpful. At least the first time around, I have not been able to contact them regarding the second pair due to the weekend and holiday. Unfortunetly, eventhough planet shoes pay for the return I still had to pay for the store to process the order for UPS. "

" They have a great seletionswith great prices. Thank you for your service."

"I got a pair of Pikolinos P.Algre shoes to dress up a couple of outfits. They looked good but they cut into my feet and gave me blisters."

"I won't buy from PlanetShoes again. The shoes didn't fit, my refund was partial, and that amount sent me down this rabbit hole.

I discovered PlanetShoes via a large, established website which fronts for resellers (LEWWFFR). The return policies shown on LEWWFFR and PlanetShoes websites differ with regard to exchanges. In addition, PlanetShoes' "Return Options" differ if ordered via LEWWFFR, but not necessarily other sites. Because I discovered PlanetShoes while shopping on LEWWFFR, I find it counterintuitive that when LEWWFFR is the portal to the purchase, the return policies are more restrictive.

As the price of education, I'll eat this $6.95 "handling fee", which is, in effect, non-free return shipping. PlanetShoes' return policy language is not at all transparent to the everyday consumer, who probably did not notice the nuanced consequences. I didn't, and when I looked closer, this is what I found.

Though "free return shipping" is provided, "returns" are charged a $6.95 "handling fee", whereas "exchanges", which may or may not be allowed, are NOT charged a "handling fee", UNLESS the item you want to exchange FOR is NOT in stock, at which point the transaction is no longer an "exchange", but now has become a "return", subject to the $6.95 "handling fee". It's an unnecessarily convoluted policy which makes it likely the consumer will end up paying the 7 bucks.

This is just not smart business. Based on today's web content, LEWWFFR doesn't seem to know PlanetShoes' current exchange policy either. PlanetShoes states "We do not offer direct exchanges on merchandise. If you would like a different size, color or item, please place a new order. " That means you must "return" merchandise for credit and place a NEW order, subjecting you to the "handling fee".

If PlanetShoes DOES offer exchange (per LEWWFFR site), the consumer is unable to determine stock at the time their order is processed, therefore each exchange requires faith that the seller WILL have the exchange item "in stock" and will not convert the "exchange" to the "refund and reorder" status. Call me a cynic, but that's a nifty little loophole.

I would suggest PlanetShoes revisit and loosen its return policies and assure LEWWFFR is kept up to date when changes are made.

***********

LEWWFFR's info (Feb 19, 2013):
"3. Exchanges are provided at no cost to you. However, if the item requested is unavailable, the transaction will be treated as a return and the return handling fee of $6.95 will be deducted from your order refund."

PlanetShoes return page (Feb 19, 2013):
2nd paragraph:
"We do not offer direct exchanges on merchandise. If you would like a different size, color or item, please place a new order. "

Bottom of page:

"LEWWFFR Orders
LEWWFFR Returns
Customers in the contiguous United States returning merchandise purchased on LEWWFFR are eligible for free return shipping. We'll provide you with a pre-paid UPS label to make shipping a snap. Please note that a return handling fee of $6.95 will be deducted from your order refund.""

"I found Plant Shoes to be very unprofessional and lacking in basic customer service and care. Following my complaint I was ignored untill almost daily i have been receiving ongoing promotional and marketing advertisements. I have repeatedly, at least seven times to date, requested them to discontinue there marketing to me and yet they continue to do so. I don't like the company and wish to not be bothered by them. They have never contacted me regarding my complaint only with marketing and promotions. They have no concern for their customers once you place they order, they only want the order."

"This is the very first time I've ever bought shoes online. I only did it because I had an identical pair that I bought several years ago at a regular store so I knew the size and style I wanted. I searched the internet and Planet Shoes had the best price and free shipping. The transaction went exactly as you would hope. There site said they only had two pair left of that size and color so I half expected to get an email saying their count was off or get a box that was damaged, but instead I got the shoes quickly and no sign of any kind of damage or issues. I will not hesitate to buy from Planet Shoes again if the situation arises."

"Good service and pricing. The Jambu line runs pretty big, I ordered a size 11 and because it has an adjustable leather/velcro strap in the back, I thought I could tighten it up enough to make it fit. That worked for the first time I wore them, but it seems to have stretched out and now they are too big, I can't get the strap to tighten enough to keep my ankle stable. I'm afraid that I'll break my ankle if I wear them b/c they are too loose. There seem to be NO exception to the no return on worn shoes, so BUYER BEWARE!!!! Had I purchased them at a retail store, they would exchange them for a smaller size. The discounted price was definately NOT worth it."

"Ordered some shoes from planet shoes late last week, and had them at my door early Monday morning. Received a tracking number shortly after my order too. Cant complain with fast and free shipping!"

"I would never buy anything from Planet Shoes again. Their website says returns are free, and while they did e-mail me a return shipping label, they then charged me a $6.95 fee for returning the shoes, and there is absolutely nothing in the return policy posted on their site that alerts you to this fee. It then took way too long for them to credit my debit card back with the reduced refund, and they only did so after I e-mailed them twice demanding my refund. Beware-- you have been warned!"

"The shoes are fine,good price,but I payed extra fot 2-3 day shipping and it took 8 days (11/23/11-11/30/11)and no refund of extra charges.basicly said nothing they would do "

"Planet Shoes was one of the few places that carried a specific style of Bostonian shoe I wanted in the size I needed. Their pricing was fair, and a discount code brought the cost down even more. I received an order confirmation right away, and the order took a couple days to process and ship. Unfortunately, I didn't hear a peep out of Planet Shoes after that initial confirmation e-mail. The shoes just showed up a little more than a week after placing the order with no shipment notification or tracking number. The return address on the shipping label showed that the shoes were dispatched directly from Bostonian, so Planet Shoes is essentially a drop-shipper. Ordering from such places is always a gamble. You can snag some great deals, but your preferred deity help you if you have a problem. Everything worked out OK in this case, but in the future I'll probably shop elsewhere, even if I have to pay a bit more."