When is the last time that you shop at a family owned shoe store where you get assistant from senior staffs who knows pretty well about the comforts between your toes and the pair of perfect fitted shoe. Look no further than Okun Brothers Shoe Store, a 90 yrs old dinosaur at downtown Kalamazoo MI. My hubby, a Scandinavia descendant was born with big viking toes. No shoes fits him other than a pair of ex-large sports shoes. Forget brand or fashion, it doesn't fit. An elder gentleman at Okun Brothers saved him. Just after a short conversation, he came back with two pair of well-constructed leather shoes that fits hubby's toes perfectly and it is not ugly. He applied little discount and we bought one pair for $ 60. It worth the money. I told hubby that I will hold his hand again walking on the street of Paris! The shop is around 1000 sqf. It has 3 experienced staffs on site to help you find a good pair of shoes. They are knowledgeable and serious. If you are looking for a pair of safety work or casual wearing, you won't go wrong here. read more

Okun Brothers Shoe - Shoe Stores Near Me - Kalamazoo, Michigan

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Used to be great, but now they won't order boots because of supply chain... if I'm willing to pay and wait...why turn business away... Red Wings in Holland has never let me down, back to them I guess. read more

Yesterday I went in to return a pair of boots that I had bought last week for work, and that ended up being too small for me. I walked in with my box and noticed everyone on the floor was busy, so I wandered over to the men's boots to see their selection. Seeing as the women's section is very small (for welders anyways) and they were out of stock in my size last week, in just about every women's boot that they had and might work for my needs. All of a sudden one of the female staff is right by my side basically asking me what I need. I started explaining my story and gestured to the men's boots saying something about coworkers suggesting I try looking there and she cuts me off saying that they won't work for me, they're too big, anything to get me away from the men's wall of boots and back over to the small panel of women's. So she shuffled me over to the women's, and then in my opinion, gave me no other option than to go with a new pair of the same boots I've been wearing for the last year. Then as I'm trying this new pair of boots on for size she ditches me, so now I've got both these boot boxes on the counter and I'm waiting for help from the cashier when all of a sudden this short old man comes up and without a word shoves both boxes out of the way so he can write something down for another customer about ordering a size of boot she needs (go figure.) No "excuse me", "no have you been taken care of"... then when I get to the cashier she asks me who my sales person is LIKE I'M SUPPOSED TO KNOW THAT, SHE DIDN'T EVEN HELP ME. She grabbed A box. Employee of the month status right there. That's how I got stuck with the same pair of heavy cinder block boots, with the heel that rips off when you take them off the way God intended - with your other foot. Awesome. But I think what really ground my gears was the fact that this isn't the only time that I've been to Okun Brothers and the staff has essentially refused to let me look at the men's boots. Like, I get that my feet are smaller than the average man's, but it's not like these shoe manufacturers don't MAKE them in my size. So OB couldn't just order them if they don't have them in my size? What do they do when men with my size feet show up? Does OB throw them out? Or send them to the women's section? Also I think its crap that even the women of this establishment are sexist against women, just assuming what I need and where I'll get it and offering a measly stock to back her up. I understand having a back stock of small men's boots would be out of the question, considering OB can't even keep women's boots of various sizes in stock. I'm not asking for a miracle. But maybe the next time a gal walks in and wants to check out the men's shoes because she doesn't believe that shoes should be genderized, she wants a larger selection of footwear to choose from considering she's going to be standing in them on concrete for 40+ hours a week, and she doesn't want to get harangued by a dick sales person for all of the above. It costs $0 a day to be nice to people. It won't even hurt Okun Bro's bottom line! I do a man's job all day long, I should be able to decide if I want to wear "mens" shoes. In conclusion, I'm just not impressed with the customer service I continue to receive from this business. I hope everyone else out there has had a better time than me. I really wanted to buy local and support our local economy, but the poor attitudes of the staff at OB make me want to give up on this establishment and just buy my safety boots online from now on. Thanks guys! read more

Okun Brothers Shoe - A welder isn't going to use their hands to take off their boots to prevent this from occurring. - Shoe Stores Near Me - Kalamazoo, Michigan

Came in here after I missed the shoe truck at my place of employment. Have to say; the gentlemen that assisted me was to the point, quick and helpful. I was in and out in about 10 min.! Just the way I like it! Oh yeah, boots in purchased where comfortable and of decent quality. read more

I've recently discovered that my feet hate me. Currently I'm on the most irritating mission ever given to any human and the end goal is to find a pair of shoes I can wear for longer than 60 minutes and remain standing. It feels impossible. My Mom feels my pain because her feet hate her as well, so yesterday she and I went downtown to shop for shoes. We started at Okun Brothers because that is just where we always started when I was a kid. My Grandfather bought me my last pair of Sorels from Okuns around 20 years ago and I STILL wear them today. When we walked in the store we were expecting to find work shoes, but we found a really wide selection of Dansko, Keen, Clarks and of course work shoes. There was also a pretty good size wall of shoes that were marked down for clearance. We looked at the Dansko and Clarks and my Mom looked at the sale shoes. I tried on about 15 to 20 shoes before I cornered a very uninterested female employee and told her my foot tale of woe (an abbreviated version). She was not helpful. She suggested a Dansko, which was the very shoe I was currently unsuccessfully wearing on my foot. She pulled out a soft-bed Dansko and left them on a chair for me to try. Okun Brothers is not the shoe store I remember as a child when the staff took the time to measure your feet and assist you with what you need assisting with. I went into Okuns ready to spend money and if the employee would have taken the time to measure, she would have helped me understand that my feet measure larger and I could have purchased a number of shoes from her wall. As it is, I left empty handed and a sad feeling that my 20 year old Sorels are the last shoes I will ever buy there. read more

My family has been shopping here for over 50years! NO more! First, the lady is absolutely RUDE! I'm not sure if they realize that the reason people still support local is customer service. She needs to be fired! Secondly they don't do returns anymore! You can buy any work boot online and get a 30 day comfort fit guarantee! So explain why I or the other 20 family members should go be treated so rudely, with NO guarantee! N read more

My husband keeps buying boots that don't last or hurt his feet. We went to Okun brothers and the salesman recommended several styles. He went into the back several times to bring out everything my husband looked at. Finally we tried the one the salesman had recommended as the best and most popular for construction workers. They were well worth the money! After 3 months, they look great and are so comfortable that my Husband is going to purchase another pair just for everyday wear. They are also the only ones that sell the socks my husband prefers. Thanks for being there Okun's. read more

Wow, my husband spent $130 on workboots from Okun Bros. downtown Kalamazoo. They don't even last a year even though he barely used them for workboots. These people refuse to replace them even though there is a warranty on them. But since he returned the last ones (that only lasted a month) last February, it was still prorated for January when he bought the first defective boots, so the warranty is no longer effective. That makes no sense. Shouldn't the warranty be a year from when he purchased the boots on his feet? Nope, they offered him $10 in-store credit, what? Seriously? Guess we'll just go to Payless since they are cheaper and last longer. If you need quality workboots, don't go to Okun Bros! Let all your hard working friends know this, I'd hate for anyone else to waste their money at a place that will just rip them off. read more

We had a great experience! We were visiting from out of town, and my mom needed a more comfortable pair of walking shoes. When we walked in, the staff was friendly and helped us find what we needed. They were kind, knowledgeable, helpful, and even gave us suggestions for places to eat while in town. We appreciated the excellent customer service, and if I lived here, I'd definitely shop there again! read more

I had to find some dressy safety-toe shoes for an interview with a manufacturing company. I appreciated the quick attention and service from these skilled individuals at Okun Brothers Shoe Store. They had plenty of selections in stock (unusual for women's safety toe shoes!) and were knowledgeable enough to help me find what I was seeking. Gave me 10% off at the register and wished me luck with the interview (yes, I got the job!). Thank you! read more

My husband has purchased work boots from Okun Brothers for the past three years. Sadly, this will be the last time. When he went in this past month, he was given the impression that his business was unwanted, as the clerk was very anxiously awaiting a nicotine break. The attentive clerks of the past gone, replaced by short and curt interactions. Additionally, the much appreciated local contractor discount, which adds up when you are purchasing shoes upwards to $300, is now only extended to union contractors, which seems rather discriminating. I researched and they have recently changed ownership, maybe that is why the downgrade in service. We won't be back. read more

I went into Okun Brothers looking for new shoes. My in-laws, who have lived in Kalamazoo for two decades, told me that this used to be THE place to buy good shoes in town. Even just walking into the store it was obvious that this is no longer the case. This isn't a large store, so I wasn't expecting a huge variety of shoes. They do have a decent variety of quality shoes as well as some more affordable shoes as well. What really struck me about this store was how dis-interested the staff seemed to be. Although there were several people working in a small store, and although there weren't any other customers, it seems that I didn't even warrant eye contact. I did end up purchasing a pair of shoes, still without any acknowledgment of my existence or offers of help, and walked up to the check-out counter. The young man sitting at the desk said nothing, until somebody else came up, told him what to charge, and then walked away (again without looking at me). My experience at Okun Brothers wasn't bad, but I would certainly expect much more from a customer service oriented business. read more

Went to Okun Brothers Shoes yesterday to look at water proof hiking shoes. I stood there for 5 minutes waiting for some help. Lady finally asked guy next to us if he needed anything to which he replied, "no just checking some boots out." She continued to push herself on this guy when I asked her a question about a shoe. She was curt and dismissive and I finally just walked out. Never will go back. read more