My original review of Endless.com was written while the site was still in beta, shortly after it was quietly launched by Amazon.com in December, 2006.
I gave the beta version of the site 3.5 stars, and despite my few minor complaints, thought the site showed a lot of promise. Since that time, it's become one of my favorite online destinations for shoes. Below is my revised review.
I gave the beta version of the site 3.5 stars, and despite my few minor complaints, thought the site showed a lot of promise. Since that time, it's become one of my favorite online destinations for shoes. Below is my revised review.
Pros:
- Free overnight shipping on most items
- Free return shipping.
- 365 day returns for items in new, unworn condition.
- 100% price guarantee.
- Unique navigation system, allows for easy viewing of similar items.
- Good selection of brands and styles
- Great sale prices
- Easy checkout, especially for Amazon members.
- Helpful user reviews
Cons:
- Designer items are in a separate area and don't get listed with brand-name shoes.
- Needs more specific top-level categories, like "evening shoes," etc.
- Some navigation features might be confusing to new visitors.
Free Overnight Shipping at Endless.com
Shopping for shoes online is beyond practical and even beyond fun. In fact, for many of us, it's nearly an addiction.By offering free overnight shipping, this shoe store has just found a way to fuel that obsession even more. This doesn't surprise me from an Amazon-owned site, as I've always found Amazon.com to be the most addictive, and easiest to use destination on the web.
Like Amazon, Endless.com features a countdown clock telling you how long you have to order if you want to receive your item the very next business day. For me, this makes it seem as if they've thrown down a shopping gauntlet, and I know it's only a matter of time before I accept the challenge, and begin adding items to my shopping cart.
I've succumbed to the challenge several times over the past couple of years, and I've never had a bad experience yet.
My shoes always arrive the next day, and the one time I did to return an item, the enclosed packing slip made it a breeze.
The Downside of Endless.com's Unique Navigation System
When arriving on Endless.com's home page, you can select to browse handbags or shoes for women, men or kids. Clicking on one of those top level categories brings up new options to choose from, like color families, brand names, widths and even sizes. These are all great options, but some of the sub-categories are not nearly broad enough.For example, on the first page that comes up after choosing the women's category, I can choose to look at espadrilles or sandals, but I can't choose to see only "dress" or "casual" shoes until I get inside of one of those categories.
When I'm shopping for shoes, I like to start with a broader category like dress shoes, before narrowing it down to something as specific as whether or not the shoe I want is a sandal or a pump. If I want an evening shoe, I might be open to a sandal or a pump. I also like to see styles I might not even have considered. Usually, what's important to me is that I find an evening shoe, not necessarily that it's a sandal.
Things to Love About Endless.com
There are lots of features I love about Endless.com. For example, if I navigate my way to women's red sandals, and choose pair within that category, similar shoes are displayed above the pair I'm looking at. If something else strikes my fancy, I'm only one click away from its details -- this is a great time saver, and it's also just really cool.One other awesome tool is their sliding price chooser. As opposed to selecting shoes from a predetermined price range, you can actually set your own price points, by just sliding a bar at the bottom of each page. If you want to spend less than $25 (or any other amount), it couldn't be easier to see what's available to you.
