ALDEN
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I've seen the same thing in the picture above happen to my buddy's Indy boot, and Kathy was embarrassed, and handed over a brand new pair of shoes. The folks at Alden HQ aren't very good at customer service.
Well, I'll try my luck at the Alden NYC store. I somehow doubt they'll just hand over a new pair. Even though it happened 2 months into wearing them, I've had them for a little over a year now. Just never made it back into the store because they have crappy hours and are never open when I'm over in that area.
And yeah, Alden's website is HILARIOUSLY bad.
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I've seen the same thing in the picture above happen to my buddy's Indy boot, and Kathy was embarrassed, and handed over a brand new pair of shoes.
This is the proper response. What happened there isn't material flaws, customer abuse, extensive wear or a fluke of random bad luck. It's a manufacturing defect, plain and simple. It shouldn't happen in a factory of careful workers making high quality products and it shouldn't make it through Quality Control of a reputable company. The only acceptable response is a full refund or a complete replacement, and either should be accompanied by a sincere apology.
They've lasted decades by managing their growth and not expanding too quickly when their popularity fluctuates.
I respectfully disagree; that may have been how they did things in the past, but I think this latest burst of popularity led to a decision by Alden to cash in while they could. It seems (from what I've read) that they expanded production and pumped out as many pairs as they possibly could. Quality suffered and they handled that badly. When the company floated that half-assed "only shoes marked 'Alden of New England' are made to traditional standards" crap, it was pathetic. I seriously think the company has ruined its reputation with an entire generation of customers. But maybe they want to go back to being a sleepy little operation with a small clientele…
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Love how everyone hates on Alden. If this happened to a pair of Whites or Vibergs nobody would say shit. I can remember not so long ago forum members being completely gased about Alden. G had an issue with his and everyone flamed Alden. I understand and appreciate G's gripe with Alden but others need to get a mind of their own. Try and remember your not a lemming.
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If this happened to a pair of Whites or Vibergs nobody would say shit.
If it happened to one pair?.. Nope, I wouldn't think much of it… If it became a known issue, that's when I'd decide not to buy...
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If it happened with a pair of White's or Vibergs and the company said it was the buyer's fault, or that missed stitches were a characteristic of work boots, or just ignored the complaints, my reaction would be exactly the same as it has been with Alden.
We've seen several pairs on multiple forums over the last couple of years doing what was pictured above. That's a failure in the construction that shouldn't occur in boots at Alden's price. And if it did, a company of Alden's reputation should fix it instantly, both at the production level and at the customer level. Their refusal to do so, while simultaneously demeaning the customer, is my problem here.
I'm glad that you love your Aldens and have had great experiences with them, but love can be just as lemming-like as hate.
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All I know is I had an issue with my 405's sent them to Alden NY after 3 months of heavy use. They send them out to Mass and a week later I had a new pair no questions asked.
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Well, I'll try my luck at the Alden NYC store.
Alden doesn't own that store so you might not get anywhere. They only have two stores that are owned by Alden; The San Francisco store and the DC store.
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Sadly, I experienced the same exact problem Giles described earlier in the thread. It happened about 2 months after buying them. I emailed Alden and they said something along the lines of "those will have to be shipped out for repairs…it might be...a while. Sorry, we can't give you an ETA."
I needed them at the time, so I waited a bit. They still haven't replied to my last email request. From what I've heard, if I hand them over, they'll just get lost in the Alden repair void. I'm about to give up and have a cobbler just fix them with different soles or something.
Pretty shameful customer service for such expensive boots. I also have Roy boots and love them, but this has really soured me on the Alden experience.
Also, the fit and finish on these were REALLY bad. Nothing lines up, nothing is flush. They were hard to find in 9.5EEE so I was excited when I first bought them. On closer inspection…ehhh.
Were they irregulars? I'm curious if you pointed out the fit and finish issues with the vendor when you purchased them.
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No, brand new from the Alden store, full price. I didn't really notice until I got home and really inspected them. I emailed them about it and mentioned it (with pictures) but they only replied about the welt issue. Since then, I inspect the hell out of boots before I buy them. Lesson learned.
Crooked welt stitching:
Weird chopped off welt. You can also see where the heel doesn't line up in this pic:
Ripped welt, and you can see how the midsole isn't flush:
They also had horrible burrs on the eyelets and ripped through every pair of laces I put on them. I finally gave up and use ugly round laces, because they were the only ones that didn't rip in less than a day.
I'll give them a fair shake and go in this weekend and see what they say. I've put it off for too long.
Here was their email:
Please send or bring the shoes back to our store and we can have them repaired by the factory for you. Alden covers any defects with the shoe, and this most likely would require a resoling from the factory. We will have them repaired as fast as possible once we get them back. Sorry for any inconvenience.
I just didn't want to wait for repairs because they were my only pair of black boots at the time. I'm sure they'll fix it, I'm just more worried about how long it'll take. I've heard a couple horror stories. No big deal now, so I guess I'll find out.
Cleaned up and ready to go back-
And just to clarify, I'm not just talking a bunch of shit. I was mostly surprised to see Giles' similar issue. I just bought a pair of 403's and they're perfect. Not sure if the intern made these those 401's or what, but they're a mess.
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Wow. Those photos are just…. wow...
.. I hope the retailer does the right thing for you. -
:o after seeing these pictures I was really thankful that this has not happened to my pair…..
Until taking my boots off last night before bed I noticed the beginning of similar seperation near the inside ball area of the foot.....
not real thrilled as these are my only pair of boots still in commision. pair of vibergs ordered, hopefully these last until i recieve and these will be going back to Alden. Man, I just can't believe this... I have been loyal to Alden for quite a while with several pairs of cordovan dress shoes -
Mine just came back, complete resole, looks good! Will keep you guys posted.
glad to here!
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That is good news, been talking to the sf store today and they are suppose to get back with me on Monday.
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They look great! Glad to hear you were taken care of
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I will give credit when it is deserved. The manager of the alden SF shop just called. He informed me he was not present this weekend and apologized for the way the matter was initially handled in his absence. he has shipped out a new pair of 405's and told me not to worry about returning the defective boots until I recieve the new pair on Thursday, and provided paid shipping for them to be returned to them.
