My daughter wanted to buy some shoes a few years ago. She is heavily influenced by the pretty and fancy name brand products. The LBS had a wide range of shoes and prices, but she picked an expensive pair. I realize that shoes are important and they are a long term investment because my Diadora's are almost 20 years old, but the high prices still hurt. She bought the shoes and paid for them, then she found the same pair on sale at our local REI so she took the first shoes back to the LBS and bought the cheaper ones from REI. I told her I didn't like this but I couldn't influence her beyond this.

I need to replace my Diadora's right now. I'm not up on the latest shoe brands, and I remember from the old days that some shoes fit differently from others. For instance there were a few brands that had real high arches. I'm torn between buying online and paying a lot at the LBS, but unless I could find a pair of Diadora's online I will probably go to the LBS and see what they have.