Ebay And Shopping.

[Puffer]

Nice boots, Russ.   I suggest that, to invite conversation, you also wear a red nose, or a revolving bow-tie - or anything else unusual.   

[Tacchi Alti]

Excellent advice! Someone else suggested I wear pink thigh boots.

[FastFreddy2]

It has been a while since I have had an Ebay 'disaster', but looks like one has arrived. (Was I due one?)

The problem is a pair of Office courts - despite me owning 4 pairs already (two styles with duplicates - of course). I went for another style at what looked like a good price. They would have been at a good price too, if they weren't worn out. Office shoes usually come with spare tips, and these had none. I suspect they were sold before the second set of tips were worn out. In a PM they were described as "hardly worn". The right shoe has been worn so much, it fell off my foot on the third stride. Usually, I have to lever these on..... 

Disappointed, and a tad 'miffed' someone has done this, especially since they seemed to be a good seller. Good communication, and they upgraded the carriage without asking for more money. Had they arrived in the condition stated, I would have been happy to return the extra carriage cost as a mark of goodwill.

Ho-hum.  

[Puffer]

On 11/30/2016 at 9:25 AM, Russ in boots said:

Excellent advice! Someone else suggested I wear pink thigh boots.

That would be rather extreme - this is more restrained:   

 

[Puffer]

10 hours ago, FastFreddy2 said:

It has been a while since I have had an Ebay 'disaster', but looks like one has arrived. (Was I due one?)

The problem is a pair of Office courts - despite me owning 4 pairs already (two styles with duplicates - of course). I went for another style at what looked like a good price. They would have been at a good price too, if they weren't worn out. Office shoes usually come with spare tips, and these had none. I suspect they were sold before the second set of tips were worn out. In a PM they were described as "hardly worn". The right shoe has been worn so much, it fell off my foot on the third stride. Usually, I have to lever these on..... 

Disappointed, and a tad 'miffed' someone has done this, especially since they seemed to be a good seller. Good communication, and they upgraded the carriage without asking for more money. Had they arrived in the condition stated, I would have been happy to return the extra carriage cost as a mark of goodwill.

Ho-hum.  

I assume you will require a full refund - or open a dispute?

[FastFreddy2]

1 hour ago, Puffer said:

I assume you will require a full refund - or open a dispute?

One way or another, I will get my full initial payment returned. I proposed to the seller I would accept the cost of the return, not least because I want to spend more money doing than I might really need to. (RM 2nd Class Signed For at £3-95 vs. Hermes at £2-80.)

The seller has agreed a return, and I have started the formal process for this with Ebay. It forms 'a case', and as far as I know this needs to be used so the seller gets their fees back. It also provides Ebay with some visibility of what's going on, should there be some difficulty further down the line. I am not expecting any. The seller seems genuine, and as far as I can tell there is still 'good-will' between us. If the return is agreed, I return the goods, seller returns money. Seller gets credit for fees and case is automatically closed with 'no strike' recorded against the seller. If it all goes smoothly, I might even be tempted to leave positive feedback. 

I don't often do it, but at this stage I'm happy to give the seller the benefit of 'any doubt' regarding the condition of the shoes. As a seller or buyer, I make sure the item I am selling is both clean, and in a condition it is worth selling. (If not worth selling, it goes to a charity shop if it's serviceable, 'recycling' if not.) In this instance, dirty/worn shoes were put on Ebay for not much money to dispose of them. On close inspection, I have found them to be at the end of their useful 'service' life. Given the state of the soles (filthy), it may have been too easy for the missing sole tip to have been missed. 

 

On a slightly different tack, I may have a problem with a sale.

The shoes I sold on (coincidentally a pair from Office) were sent as always, via RM Signed For. They were due Monday, latest Tuesday. RM are neither confirming delivered, or a failed delivery attempt. I have TWICE asked the buyer if the shoes have been delivered, with no response to either enquiry. Although not known to me at the time, the buyer does some selling of high-heel shoes, of various sizes (so unlikely to be a wearer of them all). Unless of course the shoes are used for photographic purposes....

The cynic in me is thinking the buyer is hoping that despite a delivery (sometimes confirmation can take weeks - though this is extremely unusual) if RM don't confirm the delivery, they will get a full refund. Confirming delivery to me, will negate any need to rely on RM of course, and remove the opportunity for a free pair of 5" heels. Ebay might lose one message, I can't how they would lose two. The seller has shoes for sale on Ebay at the moment too, so unlikely they are absent without declaring this on their listings. ??

[Tacchi Alti]

23 hours ago, Puffer said:

That would be rather extreme - this is more restrained:   

 

THIS weather??? Not sure that style would suit me though, and I definitely don't like the sandals. What a waste of heel when you have platforms like that!

[FastFreddy2]

On 01/12/2016 at 0:01 PM, FastFreddy2 said:

The cynic in me is thinking the buyer is hoping that despite a delivery (sometimes confirmation can take weeks - though this is extremely unusual) if RM don't confirm the delivery, they will get a full refund. Confirming delivery to me, will negate any need to rely on RM of course, and remove the opportunity for a free pair of 5" heels. Ebay might lose one message, I can't how they would lose two. The seller has shoes for sale on Ebay at the moment too, so unlikely they are absent without declaring this on their listings. ??

 

And despite RM still not acknowledging the delivery, this afternoon and completely out of the blue, I got positive feedback. A nice surprise.

[Puffer]

13 hours ago, Russ in boots said:

THIS weather??? Not sure that style would suit me though, and I definitely don't like the sandals. What a waste of heel when you have platforms like that!

I quite agree.   The sandals are positively orthopaedic. 

[Heels]

On 12/1/2016 at 0:01 PM, FastFreddy2 said:

One way or another, I will get my full initial payment returned. I proposed to the seller I would accept the cost of the return, not least because I want to spend more money doing than I might really need to. (RM 2nd Class Signed For at £3-95 vs. Hermes at £2-80.)

The seller has agreed a return, and I have started the formal process for this with Ebay. It forms 'a case', and as far as I know this needs to be used so the seller gets their fees back. It also provides Ebay with some visibility of what's going on, should there be some difficulty further down the line. I am not expecting any. The seller seems genuine, and as far as I can tell there is still 'good-will' between us. If the return is agreed, I return the goods, seller returns money. Seller gets credit for fees and case is automatically closed with 'no strike' recorded against the seller. If it all goes smoothly, I might even be tempted to leave positive feedback. 

I don't often do it, but at this stage I'm happy to give the seller the benefit of 'any doubt' regarding the condition of the shoes. As a seller or buyer, I make sure the item I am selling is both clean, and in a condition it is worth selling. (If not worth selling, it goes to a charity shop if it's serviceable, 'recycling' if not.) In this instance, dirty/worn shoes were put on Ebay for not much money to dispose of them. On close inspection, I have found them to be at the end of their useful 'service' life. Given the state of the soles (filthy), it may have been too easy for the missing sole tip to have been missed. 

 

On a slightly different tack, I may have a problem with a sale.

The shoes I sold on (coincidentally a pair from Office) were sent as always, via RM Signed For. They were due Monday, latest Tuesday. RM are neither confirming delivered, or a failed delivery attempt. I have TWICE asked the buyer if the shoes have been delivered, with no response to either enquiry.

Sometimes it's best not to ask you buyer if they recieved their item. They will let you soon enough if they havent recieved their item. Only thing you can do is add the tracking number to listing.

 

[FastFreddy2]

5 hours ago, Heels said:

Sometimes it's best not to ask you buyer if they recieved their item. They will let you soon enough if they havent recieved their item. Only thing you can do is add the tracking number to listing.

 

My preference is to know. This is the first time I haven't had a response at all, though I have had to wait a day or two previously. As it turned out, it looks to have prompted an indirect response. Just as well, since RM still hasn't confirmed delivery although the shoes have been delivered.

[Heels]

On 8/23/2015 at 7:35 PM, Heels said:

Just bought this pair from Ebay. Paid about £12 including postage. Seem to fit  fine.  

 

Just put this pair back up for sale on Ebay.  Along with 2 other pairs. all have a starting price of £5.

 

[FastFreddy2]

On 01/12/2016 at 0:01 PM, FastFreddy2 said:

The seller has agreed a return, and I have started the formal process for this with Ebay. It forms 'a case', and as far as I know this needs to be used so the seller gets their fees back. It also provides Ebay with some visibility of what's going on, should there be some difficulty further down the line. I am not expecting any. The seller seems genuine, and as far as I can tell there is still 'good-will' between us. If the return is agreed, I return the goods, seller returns money. Seller gets credit for fees and case is automatically closed with 'no strike' recorded against the seller. If it all goes smoothly, I might even be tempted to leave positive feedback. 

I don't often do it, but at this stage I'm happy to give the seller the benefit of 'any doubt' regarding the condition of the shoes. As a seller or buyer, I make sure the item I am selling is both clean, and in a condition it is worth selling. (If not worth selling, it goes to a charity shop if it's serviceable, 'recycling' if not.) In this instance, dirty/worn shoes were put on Ebay for not much money to dispose of them. On close inspection, I have found them to be at the end of their useful 'service' life. Given the state of the soles (filthy), it may have been too easy for the missing sole tip to have been missed.

 

Well ..... Despite my best intentions, this has all gone a bit pear shaped.

The shoes were received back this morning. The seller informed me I would get a refund on the 8th (so three days away) and I queried this, especially after being told the seller had until the 13th to refund if they followed Ebay rules. I was told my query was: rude, and aggressive. The seller then asked Ebay to intervene (so no further contact). I was shocked, and a little upset (insulted) given how well I thought I had responded. (Not getting angry/annoyed/abusive when the item I bought was so obviously unfit for sale.)

In response, I left the negative feedback that was deserved (that I never intended to leave), and contacted Ebay directly myself. I got the assistant I discussed this situation with, to read through my messages. I was told my messages were not rude nor aggressive. (Why would they be?) Further, I was told if the seller did not repay, Ebay would step in and repay for them anyway.

Mrs Freddy has said I must stop buying "used" items from Ebay, too many 'troubled' people there unwilling to understand what 'negotiation' looks like. To be honest, this is only the third time in something like 8 years I've had a poor experience in possibly something like 500 transactions. That's quite a good batting average otherwise.  

 

 

 

 

[Tacchi Alti]

My latest wedge sandals were from Ebay. Picture in another topic. Soooo comfortable. Definitely destined for lots of miles.

[Heels]

Bought this pair on Ebay a month or so ago. The make is Only Maker. Never bought from this brand before.  Had to return to seller, which is a shame as they are well made and did the style.  The problem is they are sort of on the small size. I cant even get feet in them.  I take a size a 9uk but these must be a size 7. I had a short chat with the seller and she still belives they are a size 9uk and relisted as such when returned back to her.

                                  

Edited May 19, 2017 by Heels

[FastFreddy2]

16 hours ago, Heels said:

Bought this pair on Ebay a month or so ago. The make is Only Maker. Never bought from this brand before.  Had to return to seller, which is a shame as they are well made and did the style.  The problem is they are sort of on the small size. I cant even get feet in them.  I take a size a 9uk but these must be a size 7. I had a short chat with the seller and she still belives they are a size 9uk and relisted as such when returned back to her.

      

I will almost guarantee, the sizing is in US. (So minus two from size marked.) I have a VERY similar style shoe, but with ankle straps. They are the only shoe I own with a platform. Got mine from Forever 21, and they are marked in a US size 10. They are a good fit on my size 8 feet.

 

If the ones you have are marked "9", you are right in that they are an equivalent UK7.

The company looks to be a Chinese retailer selling to the US and EU markets with (it says) local distribution warehouses in each of these places. For the EU it's Germany. The products aren't cheap either, though they do seem to offer sizes to suit all feet, up to EU46 in the style I looked at. Carriage was £4-63 on top of the £66.93 price for the PU ankle boots.

I paid £17 for the shoes I got from Forever 21, though I did buy them as a 'sale' item.

 

That's a nice picture of the shoes you bought BTW. 

 

Edited May 20, 2017 by FastFreddy2

[Heels]

I didnt take that photo, never got around to taking one. I did think at the time when I recieved the shoes they looked on the small size and maybe a us size 9. I couldn.t see a size on the shoes. My only concern is Ebay could start thinking I,m a bad buyer, I seem to be returning more and more shoes these days. I got my return postage refund. I think in this  I,m right in doing so but the seller might no think so.

[FastFreddy2]

16 hours ago, Heels said:

My only concern is Ebay could start thinking I,m a bad buyer, I seem to be returning more and more shoes these days. I got my return postage refund. I think in this  I,m right in doing so but the seller might no think so.

Ebay favours the buyer. If you have concerns over condition or sizing, as long as you have double checked with the seller before bidding ("are you sure they are a UK9, what makes you so sure?") I'd say you have nothing to worry about. Someone selling shoes without their makers box, and without sizing clearly marked on the shoes, is taking a bit of a gamble themselves - not you. 

I've had a couple/three bad purchases over recent months, which fortunately worked out although there was some cost to me. I don't expect any experience to be free, so I accepted the consequences of buying "used". Mrs Freddy has said I must stop, and I'm inclined to agree with her. Over the last 3 or 4 months I have found two retailers who sell court shoes in my size with high enough heels for me, at under £25 delivered, and the second at around £30 delivered. The second also sells boots, and of the four pairs delivered, two were faulty. One pair fitted but didn't look very nice on, I have kept the last pair (delivered last Thursday) though they were ankle boots not OTK boots, which was what I was after. (I've decided on leggings and ankle boots for the look I wanted.) Had I bought the faulty boots privately, because the faults were minor, I might have had trouble returning them even if bought on Ebay.

Even buying 'new boxed' hasn't been without problems. I have some ASOS mules in what is claimed to be a UK8 that fit more like a UK7. Oddly, since my right foot is slightly larger than my left foot, the left shoe seems smaller than the right. (The left shoe probably needs wearing.) They are attractive, and I might wear them, but my left foot looks too big for the shoe. They weren't expensive, and even if I were inclined to return them, costs would almost cancel out the benefit of returning them. They aren't faulty as such, they are new and unmarked, boxed as sent by the retailer. What could I complain about? They just don't fit. Anyone with a size 7 to 7½ foot interested?   (£15 posted.)

 

 

 

So unless I know the sizing is correct by having already tried on or bought the same shoe, with the condition is new/as new, I avoid "used" shoes and boots now. Disappointment/frustration/work/costs are more likely than unlikely, and I'm not a gambler...... 

 

 

Edited May 21, 2017 by FastFreddy2
Pictures added.

[FastFreddy2]

On 2017-5-21 at 1:20 AM, FastFreddy2 said:

they are new and unmarked, boxed as sent by the retailer. What could I complain about? They just don't fit. Anyone with a size 7 to 7½ foot interested?   (£15 posted.)

 

 

 

 

 

As worn by Mischa Barton at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival ..... (Still available. )

 

 

Ideal footwear for warmer weather .... Somewhere like Florida perhaps?   

 

[FastFreddy2]

So Russ, no takers?  

 

I bought something not shoe related recently () off Ebay, with the proviso the seller (that looks to be a business but isn't declared as such) didn't leave feedback. I did ask to change the listing to "anonymous" but the experienced seller, wealthy enough to be using an iPhone, said they didn't know how to do it despite me sending a picture of which box to tick! 

We agreed, 'no feedback' and I bought the item I was after.

2 weeks later, they left me feedback!   In response, the seller said "Apologies, I sell sooooooo much stuff .... " I don't expect my thoughts on this would stand being written here, suffice to say I wasn't happy. I've asked Ebay to have a look at it, as the buyer did say they wouldn't leave feedback as part of the deal.

And I think I've got a bad memory .... 

 

P.S.

Ebay did me a favour, feedback now removed. 

Edited June 13, 2017 by FastFreddy2

[Tacchi Alti]

I love those mules - I'd wear them as slippers - and often I take sandals a size smaller than shoes, but I think the reaction from erindors would be 'ANOTHER pair of shoes', especially as they're stilettos. We're having a bit of an argument at the moment (happens every now and again) about why I don't wear them with family/close friends around, if I wear them in public all the time. Should I call her bluff? We 'agreed' I should have only shoes I'm happy to wear in public and with people I know around, so stilettos are a nono so far as she's concerned. Other times she tells me I should take them off because our son (eg) is about to call round. Mind you, I don't think he'd notice ballet boots... My other son has seen them - I know he's glanced at them several times, and they were pretty obvious once when I drove him to the station. I've worn my concealed heels many times with him and his girlfriend around, but my other heels only occasionally when he's been there without her. However, she's one of the most open girls around (a really lovely girl, with an amazing sense of humour), and she has at least 40 pairs of heels. I saw a lot of them when I helped my son and her move to a new flat a few weeks ago, and we've had conversations about shoes. Just a matter of time, I hope...

[FastFreddy2]

On 13/06/2017 at 5:38 PM, FastFreddy2 said:

2 weeks later, they left me feedback!   In response, the seller said "Apologies, I sell sooooooo much stuff .... " I don't expect my thoughts on this would stand being written here, suffice to say I wasn't happy. I've asked Ebay to have a look at it, as the buyer did say they wouldn't leave feedback as part of the deal.

And I think I've got a bad memory .... 

 

Epilogue ....

After a bit of "mutual misunderstanding" that resulted in me being banned from bidding on more of the sellers items, (an action I can't quite fathom) clarity was restored and goodwill washed over both parties. All that remains is for me to make sure the seller knows I appreciate their gesture of goodwill.

 

On 27/06/2017 at 2:42 PM, Russ in boots said:

I love those mules - I'd wear them as slippers - and often I take sandals a size smaller than shoes, but I think the reaction from erindors would be 'ANOTHER pair of shoes', especially as they're stilettos. We're having a bit of an argument at the moment (happens every now and again) about why I don't wear them with family/close friends around, if I wear them in public all the time.

Begs the question, why don't you?

 

Quote

Should I call her bluff? We 'agreed' I should have only shoes I'm happy to wear in public and with people I know around, so stilettos are a nono so far as she's concerned. Other times she tells me I should take them off because our son (eg) is about to call round. Mind you, I don't think he'd notice ballet boots...

There hasn't been a number created large enough, to count the number of homo sapien men who have "called her bluff" and lived to regret it. So the answer to the question is: "No."

Were I to live alone, away from anyone who had known me as I am now, there is a chance that my (sometimes) lack of recognition in observing social barriers (benchmarks), might have me in heels any time I wasn't indulging in manual labour or doing something that had the potential to be injurious to my health. I do not mean as in to isolate myself from the world, but for me to be in a world where I was known, and had always been known as a 'man wearing high heels'. 

Since I don't live in that somewhat 'ideal' world, I have to respect the needs of those people around me, and allow the circumstances to exist that provide me the opportunity of enjoying their company too. Which means leading something of a double life, one I can't share with many others. I have access to perhaps 2 women and two men I can share it with socially, (and one of the men is Puffer). Anyone else who I might have contact with, knows nothing except I don't seem to be interested in football or computer games. 

Once the genie is out of the bottle/pandora is out of the box, there's no going back ... I don't know if having something other than a "double life" can actually work, as the idea of it not working is too much of a risk to tempt trying. Consequently I couldn't advocate pursuing a course I wouldn't/couldn't take myself.  

 

Quote

My other son has seen them - I know he's glanced at them several times, and they were pretty obvious once when I drove him to the station. I've worn my concealed heels many times with him and his girlfriend around, but my other heels only occasionally when he's been there without her. However, she's one of the most open girls around (a really lovely girl, with an amazing sense of humour), and she has at least 40 pairs of heels. I saw a lot of them when I helped my son and her move to a new flat a few weeks ago, and we've had conversations about shoes. Just a matter of time, I hope...

This has been mentioned before. Isn't there a chance you could slip a line into a general high heels conversation that ran something like; "Do you think it would ever be okay for men to wear a heel?" Assuming you haven't asked already..... It's perhaps a question that could lead somewhere useful on several levels, if ever it's going to. 

 

 

Edited July 4, 2017 by FastFreddy2

[Puffer]

5 hours ago, FastFreddy2 said:

...

Since I don't live in that somewhat 'ideal' world, I have to respect the needs of those people around me, and allow the circumstances to exist that provide me the opportunity of enjoying their company too. Which means leading something of a double life, one I can't share with many others. I have access to perhaps 2 women and two men I can share it with socially, (and one of the men is Puffer). Anyone else who I might have contact with, knows nothing except I don't seem to be interested in football or computer games. 

Once the genie is out of the bottle/pandora is out of the box, there's no going back ... I don't know if having something other than a "double life" can actually work, as the idea of it not working is too much of a risk to tempt trying. Consequently I couldn't advocate pursuing a course I wouldn't/couldn't take myself.  

...

And there's me thinking I was the only man in your life, Freddy - and now you leave me devastated to know there is another ...   

[Puffer flounces away with a disdainful toss of the head and tears in his eyes, only to catch his 5" heel on the carpet and fall over  ]

[FastFreddy2]

1 hour ago, Puffer said:

[Puffer flounces away ]

I've not seen you walk any other way .....   

[Puffer]

10 hours ago, FastFreddy2 said:

I've not seen you walk any other way .....   

Not recently, anyway.   As a youngster, I was supposed to 'Walk the Startrite way' ...   

... but mercifully not in this bloke's company: