Dorene’s Wide Shoes

Today my mom, daughter and I had made a special trip from Manteca specifically to look for some shoes for my mom to wear to a wedding. She suffers severly from her feet and has a very difficult time finding wide shoes that are comfortable. Originally from san jose she remembered she’s purchased shoes from there that she loved… unfortunately We caught alot of traffic and it was 5 min before closing and we knew we weren’t going to make it, I called the store and explained to the lady who answered our situation and asked if she would consider staying open a little bit longer till we arrived… without hesitation she said «just come on in» we got there and we browsed without feeling rushed… she attended to my mom, perfectly! Her customer service was beyond great! I truly appreciate all the time she took with us… never made it feel as though we were imposing on her time (which we actually were since they closed at 5pm) Thank you Dorene for your help today, your customer service is perfect, your time and knowledge were very much appreciated! Thank you for being our blessing today!

I’ve been coming to Dorene’s for many years. This store is definitely the place to go if you have wide feet, hard to fit feet, or foot problems. They have a wealth of information about all of their manufacturers, as well as many different styles and sizes in stock!
What’s better than this? They have consistently met expectations over the years. Recently, I just had an issue with a pair of shoes. They handled the issue, exchanged the shoes are are taking care of the issue with the manufacturer themselves. This far exceeded my expectations.
If you need wide shoes, this is the place to go. Again, I say thank you Dorene’s!

I walked into this store and browsed for a while since all the workers were busy. When the older lady had a moment, I assume she is Mary, I asked her if she had any non-​leather shoes. In a very rude, curt, and condescending tone, and with an obnoxious look on her face she said «Non-​leather? No, we do not have anything that is non-​leather. You have to go to Payless for that.» So I told her «Well I’m trying not to kill animals here but ok. Sorry and thanks.» I read another review where a woman had a similar experience with her mother who had a Japanese name. I cannot help but assume this woman is racist as I am Asian myself. Such horrible manners!

I was very pleased that Dorene’s Wide Shoes was able to accommodate my size 8 WWWW foot. I always have difficulties in finding shoes, and I was happy that I finally found a shoe store with shoes that fit me! Mary helped me, and after numerous shoes that I tried on, she was patient and always willing to get me my different selections. The shoes are very nice and stylish. I didn’t want any «old lady shoes.» I will definitely be a returning customer!

This is like one of a few wide shoe stores around. My wife has a wide foot and it’s hard for her to find a good pair of shoes (non Athletic) that fit her right. The store has a pretty decent amount of shoes to look at, but to me they are all old lady shoes. I would really like to see a better selection of shoes for a younger genre. It’s not just old ladies who have wide feet ! We were shopping for shoes for her that she could wear to a wedding. Unfortunately, nothing really fit right or looked good but she had to buy a pair to have and wear uncomfortably. she didn’t even wear the shoes she bought, but the store does not do returns! They will only give you store credit. Their shoes are not cheap and now we have a credit of 130+ dollars to a store that she may never find anything worth wearing.
The customer service is hit and miss depending on who is working that day.

Excellent service and selections for the past three years. Most of all, thank you for donating boxes all these years to a local church for the children to wrap, stuff, and send 60+ boxes overseas in support of Operation Christmas! Blessings to you Dorene and Donna.

Today I went to Dorene’s Wide Shoes for the third time. Here are my experiences.
Please note, the owner’s name is Mary and her daughter’s name is Dorene.
This is a great store if you are desperate for wide shoes.
1^st visit — owners daughter Dorene was the only person in the store on my first visit. I approached her because I was very excited to finally find a wide shoe store for my mother. Dorene was very strange. She seemed to lack social skills. She didn’t seem to hear anything I was saying, and she only wanted to explain to me how her store was the only wide shoe store in California, and that I should rethink my shoe choice. I wasn’t there for myself, I was there checking out the store for my mother to come on a later date. Furthermore, I do not have wide feet. Her lack of interest in hearing anything I was saying, and her disregard turned me off, but I decided to bring my mother for the sake of her wide feet.
2^nd visit — the day after my first visit I took my mother for a pair of shoes. Dorene the owner’s daughter was not in the store. Instead a very kind woman named Donna was there to help and we ended up purchasing 4 pairs of shoes from her, because she was so wonderful with her customer service skills and knowledge. Donna helped my mother try on the shoes (took her shoes off and put the new shoes on her). She gave her suggestions, and put my mother at ease. Donna receives 5 stars. One of the shoes we ordered needed to be special ordered, and we paid for it and returned a later date to pick it up.
3^rd visit — we came back to the store to (1) return a pair of shoes and (2) pick up the special order shoes. The kind sales woman Donna had set aside two pairs of the special order shoes for sizing and we were able to pick out the one which fit better. However, when we returned Donna was not at the store that particular day. Instead a red headed younger girl, and Dorene were there. Dorene was once again very strange. First, she asked my mother her name three times and made it seem like it was extremely strange that she had a three syllable Japanese first name and made her repeat it over and over. It was an uncomfortable situation, the kind you only experience when you come across people who dislike people who are different than themselves. Then I had to spell my mother’s name out to Dorene who seemed to think my mother was from Mars or another planet because of her name. Then Dorene finally went to the back of the stores and picked up the two boxes that Donna had set aside for us. Doreen brought the shoes to my mother and just stood there. These were shoes my mother had special ordered and already paid for. The kind sales woman Donna from our second visit had set aside two different sizes so my mother could pick out the best fitting pair. Dorene lacks all sales skills. She did not even open the shoe box for my mother. She stood there watching her struggle to put the shoes on. My mother said «I think these fit well», and Dorene’s reply was «the other ones won’t fit your feet anyway!» in a very condescending tone. Then suddenly Dorene proceeded to walk right out of the store. As she was walking out, I had the pair of shoes my mother needed to return, and I said «I would like to return these» to Dorene. Dorene looked at me and grunted «grrrr» and just walked past me, right out the door and plain left the building. She was so abrupt, her red headed young sales associate didn’t even know where she went. We waited at the cash register, and the red headed girl approached us and we told her we needed to make a return. Then the red headed girl asked us if we knew whether Dorene left the store or not. Her own sales person didn’t realize where she had gone to.
My entire interaction with Dorene was strange to put it mildly. I wonder if the woman suffers from some kind of personality disorder, or if she is just a plain racist? Very strange indeed. We were not able to «return» the shoes and therefore ended up with a store credit instead. I will have to use up the credit someday, but I will do that only when the kind sales woman Donna is there. But I will never give that business one more dime. No stars for Dorene and shame on her mother for passing on the awesome store to someone who will run it to the ground. Five stars for Donna. Total of two stars all together.

I used to love this place… and I mean LOVE this place… until…
…They swiped my credit card to refund me $ 250 and then never actually returned the money!
I returned boots two days after the purchase. The cashier processed the return while the owner was standing next to me. The cashier swiped my card for the refund and handed me a receipt. I questioned the receipt because it did not state «refund to card.» The owner assured me it would definitely be refunded directly to my card. I asked why it said «store credit,» and was told that it was the only thing their system is able to print on a receipt for a return. One of them told me it’s because the store is sending the credit amount back to my card, and that is why she need to swipe my card for the return. In this case, the owner saw that I was sold the wrong size because they did not have mine, and assured me that the money would go to my credit card. I looked at the sign that said «no refunds» and asked again if it would go to the specific credit card that the cashier just swiped. She said it would, which seemed fair as I was brought out the wrong size at the time of purchase.
I’m not the kind of person who would refuse store credit when a small business owner asks. But in this case the owner and cashier both blatantly lied to me. I mean, why bother lying about it???
I actually left the store thinking about how much I love this place, and how the cashier told me she would see if they can get the same style of boot in my correct size. She even called me the following week to say she couldn’t find them, but would notify me if anyone returns one! It’s that kind of respect I had come to expect from this place. This store had a very special place in my heart for introducing me to the Kumfs/​Zierra brand. That’s the brand that literally changed my life by allowing my wide feet to be über comfortable and look remarkably sexy in a pair of heels. That’s tough for anyone with wide feet!
Presumably, to give a person store credit, a cashier would issue some sort of card or certificate. Or maybe take down my information and tell me to come back to pick something else out. Which is exactly what I would have done for a couple of pairs of spring sandals. Perhaps the first thing a cashier would do is TELL THE CUSTOMER THEY WERE DOING SO.
Why lie??? That’s just weird. Perhaps there is a business plan that includes secretly issuing store credit and making the customer never want to return to use it. But such a plan would simply be insane. Really, really crazy.

I don’t expect to be waited on hand and foot by a simpering butler, but I do expect a modicum of customer service. Rude saleswoman (she seemed to be the owner, since she said «I’m the only wide shoe store in California” – perhaps she is unaware of the existence of online shoe stores), frumpy shoes, way overpriced. When I asked if there were shoes under $ 90 in the store, she told me that I should try the Payless Shoes across the street. My duck feet and I will be shopping at one of the many shoe websites from now on.

I agree with Lori P. I went to this store for the first time yesterday in search of something that fit my foot that I could get married in. My wedding is in a month, and I have had no luck online (my size and/​or the color I needed were always out of stock) or even at Nordstrom finding anything that fit my foot. I’ve been to wide shoe stores before, and usually it’s grandma shoes, mailman/​nurse shoes, tennies and birkenstock-​like shoes. I wasn’t looking for super formal WEDDING shoes, but something that was nice enough to go with my garden dress and COMFY so I would actually be able to wear them all day.
They were crowded; I was short on time but wanted to see what they had. I was pleasantly surprised by the cute and nice styles they had (in addition to the tennies and grandma shoes). Some of those brands aren’t easy to find. There is a great selection of Munro; Nordstrom only carries a few select styles of Munro.
After months of looking elsewhere, I walked out of Dorene’s with my wedding shoes in 15 minutes! I tried on several pairs and found a pair that wasn’t too informal for my dress, fit my feet, were comfy and looked good on my feet. I didn’t feel like I was pinched, flubbing over the sides, squished in the front, going to walk out of them, going to get a blister or going to be sore-​footed even though these have a 1″ wedge when I was looking for flat flats. My shoes were $ 112 after tax.
I love that I was able to find (rather than settle on) something in 15 minutes. I love that I was able to support a mom & pop store. They’re not the cheapest, but their inventory is the nicest. I will be back to get some work shoes and maybe some ‘just because’ shoes. I don’t own very many shoes at all because they’re sooo hard to find for my size/​shape of foot and shopping is usually a bummer for me. I am positive that Dorene’s will have something I like that will fit no matter when I walk in.

This store really fills a gap for those of us in need of wide shoes. Just because I have wide feet doesn’t mean I don’t want something attractive. They have such a nice selection, albeit pricey. These are GOOD shoes though, and definitely made to last through several seasons. They have shoes ranging from casual to very dressy, and in a nice selection of colors.
As soon as you walk in the door there is someone greeting you saying hello, but they don’t pounce, which is so nice. They make sure you know they’re there if you have questions or need help, but allow you to browse for as long as you choose.
Very nice group of ladies in there, and all very knowledgeable about shoes and what is or is not available. They have some nice sales occasionally, too.

I agree with Linda and Joan. I have tried a number of times to go to the store but I have never had a good experience. One time I went in and the daughter was hanging out on the couch and never asked me if I needed assistance and then one other time I went in and the mother was there and she was very snarky to a customer in front of a store full of other customers. Very rude. It surprises me in this economy that they would not be interested in retaining any customers.

Stay away from this store! The prices are extremely high and they only offer store credit or exchange on returns — no cash refunds!!! Who hasn’t bought a pair of shoes on a whim, then just plain changed your mind that you don’t need another pair??? The owner, Mary, is more interested in her business and her profit than in the needs of the customers. If you need wide shoes, go to Nordstrom where you can get some real customer service.