Williams Shoes the Walking Spirit

This is a wonderful local business with a fantastic selection and great atmosphere. What makes the store truly exceptional is the service of the fine people who work there. The gentleman whose name I believe is Rick or Rich is so kind, and the salesgirl named Greer is totally worth buying anything from, as she is the sweetest and coolest person ever. Overall, these people will go out of their way to make sure you are happy; they couldn’t be more pleasant, and the store couldn’t be more clean and fun. Thank you!

Horrible service, just plain horrible. We are a bilingual family and the staff was simply rude after they heard me speaking in another language to my kids. Ok. We purchased two pairs of shoes but even at the counter I didn’t receive a smile or even a look in my direction. I tried being friendly and chatty myself but there was no success. I came back the next day because I wanted to try on a pair of winter boots (Merrell, priced 220 $ at this store). They didn’t offer any help. One salesperson just stood there leaning to a wall and hands in her pockets. Hence, I made a conclusion that this store doesn’t need money or clients.

This is the go-​to place in the North Shore for comfortable, stylish shoes. I have been a happy camper with several pairs of Merrells. The staff is always friendly and willing to help!

I visit this store because I like comfort and style. Most of their shoes range from casual to slightly business. I love the shoes. I love the variety. For me my main concern was customer service. I am African American and after being in the store for a few minutes noticed not one salesperson asked to help me. There were other customers being serviced and helped. Perhaps this was a busy day but at some point I finally approached a male salesperson standing on the wall and asked for help. He was not helping anyone else. The way in which I was not treated and seeing others being serviced left a bad taste in my mouth for fair treatment of any customer visiting this store.

I was in and out of this place in 15 minutes and with a new pair of Keen winter boots to battle the cold and the snow. It’s a small store that has a great selection of shoes for the season on display and multiple other sizes in the back. They are extremely helpful when it comes to picking the right shoe. Not once did I feel rushed. They sell other accessories such as socks, shoelaces, etc. and they did not try to sell me on any of those. They knew what I wanted, and they provided me with all the information I needed to know to help with me getting the right pair of boots. I am definitely getting my future pairs of shoes from here.
On a side note– They do have a clearance/​sale section, but from what I saw it seemed to be mainly women shoes that were on clearance.
Also, they do appear to have a website, but there really isn’t anything on it. Don’t let the lack of information be a deterrent from this store. :)

This quality place doesn’t only have amazing shoes & boots [stylish & comfy] but their warm hospitality sets them apart. They have great selections of warm wool socks, shoe inserts etc. & they work with you to try & find the perfect fit for you & your feet. I feel like a million bucks every time I go there.

I scored a great sale here on black rain boots, work appropriate and all and it was the last pair in my size. I am a huge fan of the shoe styles and brands this store carries. I also find the store to be very charming an old school bootery. The shoes that the store carries are so cute and unique you really will not find them in a big box store, maybe on-​line but you can’t try on shoes online. I had a young girl helping me, maybe a young college student, she was lacking some knowledge about the cleaning of the shoe but can’t expect her to know everything about every shoe they have in the store. I will definitely come back for more; a girl never has too many shoes.

Williams has the greatest selection and most helpful staff. I live in Chicago and drive up to Evanston for my shoes.

I love this store. Love it. They have a wonderful selection, comfortable and (generally) fairly stylish selection, and excellent sales. I have never had anything but a good experience with my purchases until today. I bought two pairs of shoes thinking that, if I didn’t like one of them, I’d return them — neither were marked down, but the store was having a 10% discount store-​wide. My clerk did not disclose anything particular about the purchase, and I didn’t think anything of it. But then I went to return the pair I decided against and, lo and behold, you cannot return sale items for full refunds.
Now this doesn’t sound strange, but in my experience «sale items» mean «items that have been marked down specifically». Usually, store-​wide sales do not affect return policies, particularly when someone has a receipt. But here at the Walking Spirit, you cannot receive your money back — just store credit. Now, as I am a regular customer, this was (I suppose) fine, but it made me think: «Have I ever been in The Walking Spirit when there wasn’t some sort of (at least nominal) store-​wide discount?» And, to my recollection, the answer is no. This leaves me wondering — if there are always store-​wide discounts, can there ever be a time when a customer can get their money back on a purchase? It seems like the answer is no, and it seems like the salespeople know it. When I was looking around the store this afternoon, there were cryptic signs stating, «Choose carefully, no refunds on sale items.» Again, the vagueness of what is and is not a sale item in a store with constant small discount sales running comes to mind.
Needless to say, the experience was extremely frustrating. I left irritated, feeling tricked and angry.

This store needs more variety for sure. I came here for insoles because I have high arches and the workers in the store seemed friendly and approachable. They allowed me to browse until I seemed a bit confused, then they approached me and asked if I had questions. I told them that I am looking for arch insoles and explained to them about my problem. I think while they sympathize, they did not really have insoles tailored to my need. They picked out a pair of insoles that looked like they were tried on and had a 50% off sticker on it. I would never but those insoles at original price, they were priced something at like $ 36. I am a female but they gave me a pair of male insoles, when I came home, because they were male insoles they do not fit my shoes properly and my shoes were not wide enough. Also, the insoles was not specific to what I was looking for, but I was out shopping that day with time to kill, plus they answered another question that I had well and the insoles had a 50% off discount so I went ahead and bought it. However, now I cannot use the insoles at all. The questions they answered well was that I asked if they have any special tricks for stretchy the calf area of leather boots. They suggested that I blow dry the boots and warm them up and then put them on and wear them all day. I think this is helpful but it still needs another method, either a boot stretcher or leather relaxer spray. Overall, it is a clean store, with nice staffs. The staffs could have been a bit more knowledgeable, when I asked them about the insoles they had to consult the owner of the store. Their sales skills could also be better. Also the prices were high with a limited selection, for these reasons, 3 stars. I assume that most people in Evanston probably would not come here for hiking supplies since there is a REI in Chicago.

This store was amazing! I’m from Cincinnati and stopped in looking for some comfortable boots. The clerk was very helpful. I purchased some Reiker Astrid boots in a nice grey shade. The next day I went back in to get them in black. My daughter lives in Evanston and this will be my fave place to buy cute, comfy (not dorky) shoes.
Also, the price was right! They were on sale and Zappos has the same boots higher priced even now which is the end of the season.
Thank you!

Bam, five stars. I was very impressed by WilliamsWalkingSpiritWhatIsItCalledAgain.
I was in a bit of a rush and asked the nice girl stacking shoes which boots worked for super uncoordinated people who needed crazy amounts of traction for the winter, as well as shoes that fit a size 5 – 6 (go ahead and laugh — my small feet are rather amusing). I tried on two pairs and the first didn’t fit at all, but the second fit my feet PERFECTLY. The girl working there was able to answer all of my questions and gave me time to walk around and size them up. The boots were also $ 100 but, get this, down from $ 150. And they are kind of perfect.
Other reviews here are negative and I’m sure justifiably so, but I had a wonderful experience and found incredibly comfortable boots in under ten minutes!

Have never known the Owner to behave in anything approaching a customer friendly manner. He simply does not care to get your business and makes that clear. His prices are consistently the highest, while delivering the lowest in customer service. Now that we have resources for finding the same shoes at competitive prices, and with actual customer service elsewhere, we should do so. I can’t think of a less appreciative merchant.

I have a lot of back problems and am always looking for fashionable shoes that are supportive too. I was excited to check this place out but was disappointed. They bill themselves as a store that caries good for your body kinds of shoes, but I found their selection of brands to be really limited — mostly Merrell, Clarks, and Reikers.
The sales woman was very nice and friendly, but she just didn’t get what I wanted and didn’t really understand shoes and shoes construction at all. (I told her I wanted a fashionable shoe that I could walk in for miles on city pavement and she showed me 4 inch high heel sandals with no shock absorption.)
Unlike others, I found their prices inline with or less than other good for your feet stores. Still I’d rather go to Alamo in Andersonville for a much, much larger selection.

I just can’t bring myself to purchase a full-​price pair of shoes here when the same thing is available at Macy’s, Lord & Taylor, online at Amazon or Zappos, etc., for at least 25 percent less. This store seems to be relying on oblivious customers who don’t know any better.
Also, this is not the place to come for trendy or cute shoes. Trust me on this one. If you are looking for comfortable walking/​work shoes and live in the area, then their sale section might be worth a look. Otherwise, check out Crossroads (awesome designer resale store) or Asinamali (pricey, cute boutique but they have nice sales) on Sherman Ave.

I am all about local stores vs big chains but the service is appalling.
Selection is not too bad considering this run down tiny store in downtown Evanston.
Prices are outrageous!
Customer service is awful, especially from the owner.
Don’t waste your time or money.

Whoops, they did it again! I swore I would never shop at Williams again after a particularly poor interaction with the owner several years ago. I went in to exchange a pair of my daughter’s shoes that held up for less than 2 weeks, only to be accused of lying about my purchase date. My receipt AND their own computer records remedied the situation, but did not improve the attitude of the owner.
Shopping Friday, I fell in love with a pair of Kuru Chicanes and knew I could not find them elsewhere. Luckily, Williams did not have my size and I went in search of the shoes online. Williams price = $ 110.00, Kuru website = $ 89.00;
= $ 75.00 with no tax and free shipping. So at Wiiliams they are rude and a rip-​off. Go figure!?!

The service is not all that great sometimes but… YAY! They have a great selection of cool, smart artsy shoes at affordable prices. You can get some great deals if you go often!

I’ve been in this store a couple of times, but I’ve never bought anything. The store is too cramped for my tastes, and many of the shoes are just not my style. However, I was mostly put off by the sales ladies discussing the poor grammar of those who responded to their question of «How are you» by saying «I’m good» rather than «I’m well».
Don’t get me wrong, I can be a grammar snob, too, but I’m not so rude as to talk about it JUST after someone says something incorrectly, while they’re browsing nearby.

My husband hates it when I go here.
Love this place for its selection of casual/​dressy/​sport shoes. It specializes in comfort shoes, but a lot of the styles are cute/​fashionable too (some brands: Puma, Merrell, Born, Clark’s, Ecco, Keen, Earth). That’s good because I’m too damn old to buy shoes I can’t walk in.
A couple weeks ago, I bought a pair of brown suede Azaleia boots marked down for clearance. They had a promotion: buy one pair at original price (boots were $ 89) and get another pair free. So I got another pair of cute sneaker-​type shoes for spring, FOR FREE — saved about $ 70!
See, so it was a good deal! My husband was still mad, though.