We here it all the time.  "Big box" stores are putting the "mom and pops" out of business.  Now I admit, I enjoy shopping at Wal-mart or Home Depot once in a while, but there is something to be said for local business owners.  They know their product and their customers.

My friends John and Alice Corbett own a running store in Oro Valley called All About Running and Walking.  When I first started running a few years ago, they fitted me properly and hooked me up with my first pair of good shoes.   Over the years I have stopped and started running due to various injuries.  Last week was a "start again" week, and it was time for new shoes. 

Now I know better, but I shopped the Nike outlet, Dicks, and Sports Authority just to see what they had.  Nike had good prices but as far as I could tell, no technical shoes.  When I asked about a neutral shoe with lots of cushioning, I was met with a "deer in the headlights" stare.

Moving on to Sports Authority.  Nice guy with Manager on his name tag was very helpful.  I explained that I did not pronate and liked a lot of cushioning.  He knew what this meant (a good start), but when I mentioned that I had an IT band issue that kicks in around the 4-5 mile mark, he didn't know what I was talking about.

On to Dicks.  By now I realized that I should have gone to AARW in the first place (duh), but Dicks carries a brand that I had never tried, and I wanted to see how they felt.  On two separate occasions, I could not find anyone to help me.  On the second visit, I was clearly standing around waiting to be helped, and employees ignored me.  Corporate will be getting a letter from me.

Back to AARW.  John greeted me by name, knew what shoe I previously purchased from him over six months ago without looking it up and remembered my IT band issue and asked about it.  Then he asked how many miles I was currently doing and it I was running intervals, and at what rate.  He then brought out the perfect shoe and showed me a way to lace them that would be better for me.

Long story short - the person that knows and listens to their customers will win in the end.  Doesn't matter if you are selling shoes or houses.