Proper

Ya know, to each his/​her own, so not every shop (especially when space is limited) is going to have what you’re looking for. That they didn’t isn’t my beef with We’reWay2Kool2Kare Proper. My complaints register way before shoe style: 1) I’ll lace ‘em up, I’ll put em on and take them off and even put them back in the box nice and proper — no need to have someone help here. But the tired-​look cement bench seating was installed at potty-​training height and way too low for many/​most to sit and do what they came in to do — try on shoes. 2) Oh, is this a shoe store? Then of course they’ll have a… a… a… they don’t have a shoe horn? Use my fingers? OK, sorry to have bothered you. 3) What? WHAT? I CAN’T HEAR YOU. Because at Proper turning the volume all the way up is what makes music hot. Sorry, they are wrong. Ya gotta play hot music to hear hot music. Besides, if there are only 2 customers in the store and the sales help can’t hear what size you are because the not-​hot music is too loud, isn’t that a sign to… everyone all together now… turn down the music. So… do they have hot shoes? Whether yes or no, there’s definitely a lazy-​ass attitude that this new customer felt too bothersome to care.

I have been buying kicks from Propper since they started up.
So, on Easter Sunday they put a promo code on Instagram, there for I bought some kicks. They were the wrong size.
So, I drove to Propper to get the right size. To tell me I have to order the same shoe on line to get the same deal. Which by the way is BS. Flight Club, Karma Loop, extra is way more friendly. And ps. When I got my Refund, they still charged me shipping. For a distance of 8miles.
I hope your company realizes. Respect is what matters. Peace

This place is legit. They did a raffle for some adidas and I did everything their Instagram said to do and I won. They handled everything professionally and was very courteous and respectful. Bravo ProperLBC. Five stars!

Honestly, I haven’t heard great things about this particular store among the other boutiques in Socal in terms of how they handle their limited shoe releases. I’ve heard a multitude of rumors about this place, and I never had a reason to visit until two weeks ago.
The staff were very nice and understanding considering the general unrest of employees when it comes to limited shoe drops. I can’t speak for every experience, but mine was great. The manager was eager to work things out with the line, told us exactly how many pairs would be available, and was extremely reasonable throughout the process.
I’ll be coming back again soon.

Excellent selection, display and staffing is fantastic.
The guy helping is so in touch with adidas he actually told us that the sizing issue with them is due to inconsistencies at different factories.
Who knows that?!?
Even if he’s wrong, that is some great service.
Also, I didn’t know that I love vans even more than adidas until I saw this lovely display.
Thanks, proper.

Proper is the spot to come to for all your hard to get sneakers, Nikes, Jordan’s, Adidas’ etc. they always come through when no one else does and is always my number 1 choice to buy kicks from, just picked up my Penny V’s Miami a day early! Thanks proper!

They say you should take Unilocal reviews with a grain of salt. So to eliminate any sort of backlash or flaming towards my particular bias stop reading this if you’re thinking of checking out this place for regular shoes. If you’re thinking of checking it out for a limited release (Jordan, Asics, etc.) read on. In short, if it’s a limited release don’t even waste your time at this joke of a store. Proper LBC earned one star due to a complete lack of customer service and respect for the customer. What I mean by that is the employees are as selfish as they come. They post release info on instagram and say there will be a full size run of something (First come first served) over the phone the night before. I was fourth in line and by the time I got in the only sizes you had available were 11, 12, and 12.5? That’s seven pairs of shoes that magically disappeared.
Except they didn’t magically disappear. They were picked up by employees who could care less about the 20 people who had been waiting since about 7am.
As the store was about to open at 11AM, two employees showed up to open accompanied by two friends. More came as the minutes passed and every single one of them walked out of the store with a pair of shoes in hand, went over to their car, laughing at the people in line, and put them in the trunk. Then they all came back into the store (1120 at this point) and began to let people in. How is it first come first served if the people who showed up first aren’t served first?
To make it worse you guys could have not wasted anyone’s time by posting on instagram that there was never gonna be a full size run in the first place. If your gonna be sliding pairs to your homies cuz you have the key to the store at least be slick about it and do it the night before. Don’t be that elitist guy who thinks he’s flexing by bypassing a line of people who provide your store cash-​flow, showing up in your ¾ pants and man buns with your identical friends and laughing as you tell the people who waited «haha sorry man we don’t have your size.»
You’re not fooling anyone. You’re all a joke. I won’t be coming back.
Don’t waste your time here. There are plenty of other spots with good honest people who don’t pretend that their customers are important to them.
A more accurate name for the store would be «Improper».
Cheers :)
–James Foley

Come here if U really need a pair shoes they have in stock & U can’t find it anywhere else. Service is non existent. Walked in and got a look from 2 guys and the one girl that worked the register who had to help us cause we ask for a size & actually made a purchase. No «hello», or «let us know if u need any help», cause they were busy on their phones. My husband doesn’t care– he just wants the shoes but I think good service is good business regardless if you need it or not. Its a shame that he spent 130 bucks supporting this business. I would have taken my business to Blendz in SD or The Lab in Costa Mesa. I gave this place a extra star only because my husband likes his shoes & we didn’t have to drive hella far to get them.

Great local shop with the nicest kicks in town. If you can’t find a pair of shoes that fits your style here, you shouldn’t be wearing sneakers at all. Forget about the lame general mall releases and get something worthy. This place never fails to make me satisfied with my purchases.

Legendary shoe spot in Long Beach. If you’ve never been you’re missing out for sure. They have a huge selection of sneakers (clothes not so much). Great customer service, friendly and helpful. Not to mention Proper is two doors downs from City Grounds bike shop. Definitely a place to go if you’re looking to purchase a bike or get some maintenance done when in the DTLB area!

They are selling fake jordan 11s… got them here on 5÷3÷2014. For 150. checked them online and saw they are fake… the laces are to big the 23 is messed up. don’t buy here. They don’t even have a real web site. Check it out it’s just a page with a picture
…don’t waste your money unless you want fake shoes

Cool streetwear boutique carrying Crooks&Castle, Alife and Stussy to name a few. Sneakers are prime. Definately worth roll through.

This place has been around for a few years and has gotten worse as the years pass. This used to be the spot to cop new kicks but with rude service and unappreciative owners this place is wack! When you walk in either you get lucky and get greeted with a simple «hello» or you get ignored completely and they won’t even offer assistance! Not to mention their lack of selections. They have a pretty big spot but their selections are minimal. Walked in there to buy hubby some new kicks and after not being greeted and ignored I walked right the fk out! … Used to be able to call in for info about new J releases but they offer no info at all or are simply rude to you. Now IDK about you but last time I checked your customer makes your business. No customers no business! Maybe these folks need to rethink their business strategies! Food for thought!

I’m guessing based on the *old* reviews (barely any recent ones) this place isn’t what it used to be. I have seen this place several times since I live in the area. I went in today and left in less than 5 min.
*Walked in and was only greeted with a hello. Dude behind the counter didn’t ask if he could help or what I was looking for.
*Maybe I’m not that much of a sneaker head anymore but their selection was WACK!!! I mean I found nothing but a bunch of tacky looking shoes. Many of them were for girls.
*There is more than enough space for inventory yet I’d be surprised if I saw 50 types of shoes on that one wall. They really need to beef up stock.
Anyway, curiosity got the best of me again. No one was rude, but they weren’t helpful either and nothing attracted me in the store. Likely won’t come back soon.

I’m a fan of proper. Wish they had a location in Los Angeles.
My only complaint is… they will send you an email about a shoe release. I get all excited and try to call the store for more info (price + release date)…
They either NEVER pick up or the line is always BUSY.

For all you sneakerheads out there, this is a place for YOU. But then again, if you’re a sneakerhead, you probably already know about getting your kicks here!
Proper is an urban shoe/​clothing boutique, catering to sneaker-​obsessed guys (some gals) hoarding upon the latest and illest kicks that money can buy. Proper’s décor is totally modern-​esque. And the fact that they are located in Downtown Long Beach’s (DTLB) Artsy District area is quite charming. One side of their wall is dedicated to paintings/​murals or other artistic finds, while the opposite side displays the shoes. The artwork changes for new art showcases. So while my boyfriend peruses the shoe selection, I’m admiring the artwork on the walls.
***Disclaimer*** I’m not shoe-​collector, but my boyfriend is an ex-​collector. I remember, being dragged here with him on his latest quest for a limited edition/​new/​re-​released shoe like everyone and their mom. *** sighs *** [ I’m so glad those days are over, but I don’t mind visiting the stores to find gifts for my friends/​cuzzos].
SHOE BRANDS: Nike, Reebok, Adidas, Converse, Vans, New Balance, Puma, Timberland and Clae. Two-​three doors down, Proper has a clothing/​accessories store, which they opened up about five years after the shoe store. Here you can find: Stussy, Crooks & Castles, The Hundreds, Acapulco Gold and G-​Shock.
I remember my boyfriend used to «camp-​out» here (smh) just to get his hands on the latest kicks. In this LBC area, popular shoe sizes for men are 9 – 11. You’ll be lucky if you are able to get ahold of your size since they run out quickly. Especially if the newest Jordan’s just came out.
Nonetheless, if I were a guy and loved this hobby, I would totally be all over this place. But I think the game has kinda played out by now. Am I wrong? The employees are cool and very chill. If you don’t see your size of clothing on the display case, most likely they would have it in the back. Parking in this area is metered and some slots are 30 minutes max.
In the end, I wouldn’t mind coming back here just to window shop or purchase a gift or two.

What happened to the good ‘ol days of Proper when whoever was working there greeted you warmly and even was glad to engage you in some fun conversation, while also being extra helpful and knowledgeable about the shoes? I guess they’re gone now. Being that I haven’t been up on the sneaker game as much as I used to, it’s been quite a long time since I visited Proper. A recent visit, though, had me confused if I was in the right spot. I walked in and just saw an employee with headphones plugged into their ears, staring into the computer, with no greeting sent out our way. Not even as much as a full glance. S… M…H.
Sucks. Proper used to be one of my favorite spots to hit up for kicks.

This place has a good selection of shoes every time I come in. I was looking for some running shoes and sure enough they had some free runs but I wanted the Free Run 2 Reds. But oh well was really looking for kids shoes for my godson but they don’t carry kids (unfortunately).
If your looking for Jordan’s, they sell them here also but they usually sell out pretty quick. And if you’re going to be camping out for some Jordan’s this year, you better be prepared to stand in line and the big sizes go quick. Northern Cali there is alot of those 8 – 10 size people, so I’m usually good on getting my size 11 but there are a bunch of heads out here with 10 – 13 sized feet so not a good idea if your camping out for shoes with those sizes. Either way it still is somewhat of a lottery.
Yes check this place out, it’s in Downtown LB and you won’t be disappointed on the selection, I sure wasn’t.

The Alpha and Omega of Sneaker Boutiques, Proper keeps the box fresh youth suited and booted. A fan since their first day in business, I make the pilgrimage a few times per year (no longer the Long Beach resident) for nostalgia, Airmax 90’s, and odd assortment of goods (Clae Footwear, Adidas).
I love the Spartan style, very simple and clean (good lines). Customer service is not too shabby either; don’t really know what Austin D. experienced (perhaps he is used to a Foot Locker experience where you are harassed upon entry). Seems like they are in the environment that allows customer to pick and choose; for discerning buyers.
Until the walls crumble, I’ll continue to support this great independent shop and their alpha tasty ways…

A perfect day for me in the LBC almost always involves a trip to Proper.

Just a great selection of «fresh meat» ready to devoured by sneakerheads in the area. Ask for Corey or Marquise, they’re good peoples and will take good care of you.
On a nice sunny weekend while I’m down here this is I how roll. You swoop by Proper, you grab some limited krispy quickstrikes, pick up a few nice In4mation pieces and than head a couple blocks for you fix of Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles while they’re playing some smooth jazz music in their lounge. It’s a beautiful and proper day!