A few weeks ago I walked around the City of Kenora, Ontario,
Canada looking for affordable, lightweight footwear. Although I was specifically
seeking Holey Soles, I was prepared to photograph and take note of any polyurethane
foam resin clog. My quest carried me far and wide and into several sporting
goods stores and clothing retailers in and around this great northern city.
In Zellers, which is a large vendor right smack in the
middle of the village, I perused store shelves for almost an hour before
eventually locating SOMETHING that was composed of both foam and rubber.
SPORTEK brand sandals are interesting space age clogs that must
have evolved from running shoes. I can only imagine that some executives
somewhere decided to present consumers with JUST the rubbery soles found on
most modern cross trainers. Perhaps the success of foam clogs in the Canadian
footwear marketplace warranted this innovation…
Immediately after I snapped some pictures, I was informed by
a customer service representative that cameras are not allowed inside Zellers!
Huh? It’s true. Just try and take a picture inside the store – the staff will
swarm you like army ants and demand you delete all images. I guess this is
because they jealously protect the innovative interior layout of their showrooms…
Should Wal-Mart or Canadian Tire ever get their hands on a pictures taken
inside a Zellers they could certainly out-compete this tired retailer.
After being grilled about my true intentions, and carefully inspected
for any other signs of photo journalism, I was released back into society. Well
not exactly – at that point I was escorted by Staff into the adjoining Zeller’s
restaurant (which ALWAYS smells like greasy bacon, burgers and French fries)
to meet the Walrus.
This master tactician came complete with a miniature radio and a cryptic
name tag. He lectured me for
hours on the values and concerns of Zeller’s
merchandising ideology. Together we conversed for some
time. I call this man The
Walrus because he is both wise and entertaining… and he physically resembles
the sea mammal. While I listened he talked of shoes and ships and sealing wax,
and of course, cabbages and kings. Eventually we concluded that pigs don’t have
wings.
The shoes I had attempted to image on my digital camera were
analyzed – Sportek sandals are very fine, and priced at $28 a pair. The Walrus
informed me that these shoes were selling well and with summer approaching, he
expected they would soon be sold out… But alas they were not for me. Why? Because
they are ugly. When I asked The Walrus about Holey Soles he threw up his hands
in dismay. ‘I don’t subscribe to that fad.'
After searching all manner of footwear stores and sporting
goods stores in Kenora, I finally found Holey Soles hanging from a rack in the
Home Hardware. ‘You had better buy th
m soon.’ The nice lady behind the
counter suggested, ‘They won’t be available very long…’
When I asked why, she
confided to me that the emergence of Holey Soles each spring is similar to the
appearance of the Trillium in the woods, and the presence of migrating Canada
Geese in the skies overhead. These things don’t last long around here – this is
cottage country, and those funky shoes are hot items on the Lake of
the Woods
After a closer look, it’s easy to see why… Holey Soles are
priced to sell! At $19.99 a pair, these shoes are an absolute steal. The soft
and comfortable closed cell polyurethane foam comes in many eye-popping
colours. Already there were gaps in the display where the most popular models
were sold out. Without any additional market research I grabbed a pair of blue
Providers and headed for the check out counter.