Office

I don’t know what is going on at Office HQ. Clearly the best chain shoe store in town, Office shoes are bang on trend in a way that hugely appeals to Brighton residents, so why oh why do they still have only this tiny store with about 5 square foot of floorspace? OK, so it’s right by Churchill Square, but the footfall surely isn’t worth the fact that they can’t fit as many people into the shop at one time as want to be in there! I love Office shoes, but I often can’t face the thought of gasping for breath while trying to source a pair of pretty pumps, and so I give the Brighton Office a miss.

Office is one of Brighton’s premier shoe shops, and for good reason: the chain has always been known for the more stylish street shoes out there, and have quite a steady finger on the Brightonian style pulse. I’ve bought all of my shoes here for the past 4 – 5 years, and I have few complaints, bar the obvious: for street shoes, Office’s brands really don’t last long in the windy, wet Brighton air.
I’m a big fan of canvas shoes: there’s something quite retro, yet still stylish and relaxed about that kind of footwear. It’s probably the stupidest thing to wear in Brighton, with the weather being so variable and often wet, but style beats usage every day in my book. There’s a lot to be said for Office’s cool shoes, even if this is the wrong town for them.
Still, if you like cool looking canvas shoes, and can stand to buy new ones ever 2 – 3 months, Office is the place for you! I’m not proud of this consumerist vibe, but I’ll do quite a bit for my style…

Quality is everything, and price is usually a good indicator of said attribute.
Sometimes however there are mashed up shops which have confused this consumer idiom. Granted, their plimsolls and canvas shoes are cheap and then in turn fall apart six months later-​to be expected. But then when your glorious suede boots start falling apart after only a few months of pure happiness and contentment, I start to get a little peeved!
Outrageous I hear you cry, and of course I agree. But being the sucker that I am, straight back to the shop I went. Not to try and return them and not to demand a refund-​which I knew would be absurd-​but to snivel over and buy another pair.
But you should see them!