Cotswold Outdoor Spitalfields — Local services in London

I am writing a review to highlight the stark contrast we had in the level of staff knowledge in Leyden street compared to the Piccadilly store. The member of staff had a robust understanding of the outdoors and the uses of different boots. He was able to make recommendations based on my required usage and also the shape of my feet. I was given plenty of time to try on the boots and walk around the store and we were dealt with in a friendly yet professional manner.

We were served by a true outdoor enthusiast with an understanding of the products in stock, all members of staff were approachable and gave us confidence in the product. This strongly contrasts with the service we received in the Piccadilly store in which the staff made forceful recommendations based on an evident misunderstanding of the products they were selling.

I don't know which is considered the flagship Central London store, but I would strongly recommend this over the Piccadilly store, particularly for shoppers who need advice about their purchase. This is important if one is heading into the mountain or on expedition when a failure of kit or inappropriate equipment can become a...

I had made an appointment but had to wait 15 mins as the only member of staff was attending to three other customers. I became slightly irritated when a customer who had not made an appointment and arrived after me was attended to first.

The member of staff who first saw me seemed very experienced and brought several sets of trainers which he assessed as appropriate. For some reason I was not offered a gait assessment. I had confidence in this member of staff but unfortunately another member of staff arrived who explained he was the manger and told his colleague he could now go for lunch. This was at 4.00pm.

I was left on my own whilst the manager was doing his best to attend to three other customers. He seemed to be a very enthusiastic runner himself but not so interested in an older customer.

I have always had excellent service at Cotswold Oudoor but I am afraid today was not one of those days. It is very noticeable there is a need...

Huge thanks to Louisa for going into a lot of detail regarding running shoes. I came with the intention of doing a gait analysis and buying new running shoes, and in this process I learnt so much more than I expected. Louisa's knowledge went beyond the sound advice of "you have pronating ankles, therefore you need stability shoes" : I learnt how to tie running shoes (and also hiking shoes - very timely as I'm going on a 2 week hike very soon!) in such a way as to not constrict blood flow, and to allow for sufficient space for the inevitable swelling of your feet. Louisa was very helpful in explaining the tech in the shoes I was trying. Very proactive too, always encouraging me to ask...