South Sound Running

This place is fantastic if you want someone to help fit you for shoes! I had no idea what kind of running shoe I needed to wear. They do a gait analysis by monitoring how you walk and use their expertise to judge what shoe would be best. This was EXACTLY what I needed and I ended up leaving with a PERFECT shoe! I wish we had this store in NC bc I know several people who would benefit from it! I would recommend you come here if you need help finding that perfect shoe for running.

I can’t believe I haven’t written a review for them yet! Ok, so first off, you need to know that I am NOT a runner. Or athlete. Or even vaguely athletic. I’m the person that finds about any excuse to not exercise.
That said, I need a good shoe because of back and knee problems. I have a standing desk at work for health reasons, and I need a shoe that I can stand in most of the day. My wife heard about this store from a friend and strongly suggested that I go here. Luckily, she warned me in advance about what the process is like — its fantastic, but it is unlike anything else I have ever experienced at any shoes store!
The staff person (all of whom I have talked to are SERIOUS about running and the science of shoes) will have you take off your shoes, roll up your pants so they can see what your ankle is doing, and have you walk away from them and then towards them, so they can see exactly what your feet are doing — how they hit the ground, how the hold you up, if they tend to lean to one side, etc.
They will also measure you and talk to you about what activities you will be doing and problems you have had in the past. Then they will bring out a few shoes that they think will work for YOU. For the structure of your foot, NOT what color you want. This is all about function.
They will have you try on the first pair, and then walk away from them and then towards them, so they can see how your foot is doing in the shoe. Everytime I have been here, they are able to tell me what my foot was doing without me saying a word! They would ask, «does it feel like your heel is slipping?» and so on. Then they would bring out another pair based on what had just happened. And so on, until through the process of fine tuning your magically find yourself with the best possible pair of shoes for YOU on your feet. For me, this means a very narrow shoe with good cinching to keep my ankle in the shoe, and good arch support (for somebody else, it would be an entirely different shoe).
Before going here, I always wore insoles. Though the conversation with the staff person, I found out that insoles can actually be a problem because they either don’t support in the right part of the foot (just the arch, which is not enough), or they can even make the muscles atrophy because they stop doing the work of holding up the foot! I did notice that my first pair here my feet would get tired, but I can tell they have strengthened because they aren’t tired any more and when I try to wear my old insoles I can tell my foot muscles aren’t engaged and it has become uncomfortable — like my foot muscles are limp noodles, and they can’t do their job as well.
Besides the arch support and width, they also pay a lot of attention to the toe box (how much room you need up front) versus the ankle (how much room you need in back — this can be very different), as well as how soft the different sections of the sole are (for if you pronate, etc) and how stiff the over all sole is (for how strong your ankles are and how much support you need), and much much more.
For the first time in my LIFE I found out what is was to have a shoe that fits RIGHT. I dont’ even notice I am wearing shoes most of the time! I thought my shoes fit before — I was wrong. Now when I try to wear my other shoes, I can tell they don’t fit right, because the shoes I got here are so perfect!
Now keep in mind, these will not necessarily be the color you want. But your feet (and back) will thank you.

I’m a complete newbie when it comes to running, and these guys fitted me with a pair of Nike Oregon Project kicks that are AWESOME! I’ve been recovering from a badly broken leg and these shoes have made the transition to running as easy as I can imagine. All the cushion in the right places. Thank you so much for taking the time to get me a pair I now love.

I used to be in industrial sales and my family hears me complain that retail clerks don’t know how to sell these days. They don’ know their products, their inventory nor even want to help a customer. The first point of customer contact is at the cash register. Robots and ones who can’ even do simple making of change. But I digress …
All the above is not so for South Sound Running. They are genuinely interested in fitting you into a shoe that fits and for the application you need. 99% of their customers are runners, the rest of us are walkers or people who are on their feet all day.
Time is taken to learn what you are needing the shoes for by LISTENING to the customer and also observing your running or walking motion. They won’t pull out one shoe but may pull out many shoes until you feel you have a comfortable fit.
Now here is the best part: there is a 30 day /​no questions asked exchange policy on shoes.
Did I say they want you to have comfortable feet? I bought a new pair of walkers. Three days later, in the warm weather, my feet swelled enough to where I had sore toes. I brought the shoes back (now used) and got a ½ size larger. I wore these around the house and still wasn’t happy (at least I did not wear them outside as the first pair). Back I went today and after 4 or 5 different shoes and brands were brought out, success !
They care about their customers having a successful running (or walking) experience and know that is impossible with ill fitting shoes. They stand by their sales and listen to the customers. I don’t know what better compliment and recommendation I can make beyond that.
Added to my «I hate franchises» list

After years of shopping for and wearing ill fitted workout shoes from wherever, South Sound Running fit my funky shaped feet in the most comfortable athletic shoe I’ve ever worn. There’s something so super wonderful about small specialty stores. I feel like Cinderella ready to get my workout on. Thanks for being great listeners and not making fun of my feet. Highly recommend!

Where’s the beef? They moved into the large space next door to their former location, where the health food store used to be. I went in today and all I could see was running clothing, until I finally discovered a small selection of running shoes in the back corner. The salesperson assured me that there were «more in the back.» I told him I was thinking of cross trainers, and he gave a snooty reply that they specialized in running shoes. That was all they had. Okay, so I guess Olympia runners don’t lift weights before running. He asked if I ran, and I replied that I had stopped a couple of years ago, but I used to run back when Tinley was winning the Iron Man. He got a blank look on his face. I said, «The guy who won the Iron Man twice? Had his own line of running clothes?» He asked, «Was that the Kona Iron Man.» I told him that back then, it was the only Iron Man. I decided that if I brought up Benoit, Salazar, or Shorter, I would be dating myself. He seemed like a nice young guy, but he didn’t seem to know a lot about shoes. I tried on a pair of New Balances, and he felt the toes and said they fit great. Wrong. They were too small. I went with the next size up, and was happy with the shoes. The shoes were $ 150, so the sales clerk had to make a big production of squinting at my credit card and driver’s license. Either they must get ripped off a lot, or I just look suspicious. It’s a nice little business, but I’m not sure there’s a lot of value added.

My husband spends way too much money here. That’s cool, though, since he has no «bad» habits. The staff is extremely knowledgeable (and fast). They’ll spend lots of time fitting you and watching you run across the store, but it’s definitely a better shopping experience if there are no other customers there.
Running shoes are spendy, but we like to support the local vendor!