Lifespan and CPW of Footwear - YouLookFab Forum

I still continue my huge closet edit and now I'm working at CPW issues. As footwear is my absolute favourite I started analysis from shoes and sandals. After my last purchases I have 22 pairs of summer footwear, excluding sport sandals, sneakers and high-heeled shoes that I use only for special occasions (once a year maximum). These 22 pairs work from May to September, I love them all and can remember when and why I bought each pair.
The oldest of these paires was purchaised in 2007 and still looks great (it's brown and turquoise platform sandals that I posted in my Africa capsule http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....led-africa). I wear them rarely, because they are not as comfortabe as they might look, about 5 times diring the season or even less. I own them 8 years and wore about 40 times. The sale price was $75 (full price $250), so current CPW is about $2. It will decrease if I continue wearing them.
My working horse is a pair of Ecco sport sandals bought in 2011 ($50 on sale). In the first two years I wore them everywhere, because I was very thin and gravitated towards sport style. Photo 1 is from my trip to the Black sea in 2012. Now I got back to my normal weight, my wardrobe became larger, but I continue wearing them on the regular basis, when I walk with my doggie and ride a bike. We have 80-100 hot days in a year, and for 5 years it's about 500. CPW is $0.10. Do you have such winners in your wardrobe?

High-heeled shoes have the highest CPW in my wardrobe. They cost $50-70 and I wear them 3-5 times in my life. It's too pricey for me, so I keep my old pairs in case I need them and strictly ban purchasing new ones.

Now I decided to take CPW of my footwear under control. I printed tables filled with numbers 1..100 and glued to the boxes, in which I keep my footwear (usually original boxes). I strike the current number out when I wear the pair (Photo 2). I also wrote the year of purchasing and the price. No more "as far as I remember" and "about" in the calculations, only ruthless numbers!

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8 years ago

Anonymous

Great idea. I calculate CPW and it has been incredibly helpful. Like you, I get the least amount of wears out of my heels. Some pairs have been worn only twice since purchase. A few others have been worn a bit more, but none of them have been worn more then 10 times. Very expensive. I am done buying pumps/heels.

Scarfs as a grouping have the absolute highest CPW. I love the look of them on other people. I absolutely love the thought of them, but I buy them, wear them once, and never wear them again.

My best CPW? Pants and bags.

Summer

Veteran

You are very organised, Alexandra, and I can see you like your shoes!

I don't track the CPW of my clothes as I have a very small wardrobe which has to work hard for me. I make sure that I'm wearing everything on a regular basis - except for dressier items which get worn less frequently.

Tracking makes perfect sense, though, and your "numbers on the box" system looks simple and effective. Good thinking.

Maneera

(website)

I can see how organized and practical you are Alexandra. Great job!!!

I have far too many shoes I haven't worn at all this season. I haven't started with CPW of any wardrobe items, as I am yet to get a handle on my numbers. But like you, my sandals and flats get a LOT more wear than my heels.

I may be inspired to do this exercise myself! I do not remember when and where I bought a particular pair in the past. But since 'accountability' for your purchases is a new concept to me, I can start tracking CPW for shoes I've added this year....because there I am certain and remember the numbers. Great Post! Very inspiring!

Thistle

I accept a higher CPW on footwear if the footwear is "walk your dog comfortable". I live in a true 4 season climate with hot summers and freezing cold winters - temperatures can vary as much as 125 degrees Fahrenheit. So, I have fewer pairs for each season, but they get a lot of wear. Even with care, it's hard to get footwear to the 5 year mark for me. I am at peace with that.

On the other hand, I have a pair of sport sandals from Teva that throw all of that out. I have been wearing them for years, all summer long, and they still look new. When they do give out, I will be buying another pair!

Elly

I'm another one that wears through footwear very fast (probably because I like nicer stuff because of foot issues, so I have fewer pairs -- 10 total, plus gear like running shoes). I wear mostly boots and sneakers and supplement with sandals. High quality boots (like fryes, Doc Martens, and other pricey brands) last me for years. Fashion boots usually wear out in 2-3 seasons. Sneakers are done in 2 seasons. Sandals usually last me two seasons as well. Dress shoes can last for a long time because I only wear them a few times a year-- right now I have two pairs (summer and transitional) that have each been worn a few times each. I usually replace them when I find something more comfortable.

Currently my biggest hole is a work appropriate warm weather dress shoe (no open toes allowed).

Joyce B

I haven't gotten into exact CPW numbers but your charts are a great idea, worth doing that.
I also love my shoes but I have gotten more discerning in my choices. They need to be comfortable if they are gear, and comfortable and nice if they are not.
You have a good plan.

Laura (rhubarbgirl)

I like the grid on the boxes, very clever. I've not calculated CPW precisely for shoes, but I suppose that I aim for a CPW that's below a dollar a pair. Most of my shoes, once I've owned them a year, probably get below that. Flats are worn six months a year heavily and occasionally the rest of the year. Sandals are three to four months of summer and boots the same in winter. Fashion sneakers are usually worn a couple times a week.

Gear sneakers I try to replace every year or eighteen months, since "they say" that working out on old shoes is bad for you. This is probably one of my biggest shoe expenses, honestly. The rest of my shoes I usually wear until they look visibly worn or feel uncomfortable by the end of the day. Excluding my special occasion heels, I don't think I have any shoes that are older than four years, except my one pair of steel toed work boots from college that will probably outlast the apocalypse. Regular shoes just don't last me more than two to three years of regular wear.

Recently, I've found that my cheaper shoes have the highest CPW, since I don't wear them as much and they aren't as comfortable. Sometimes I can manage something on sale or a quality brand thrifted, but nowadays if I haven't spent minimum $50-75 on a pair of shoes they are unlikely to become workhorses for me.

CocoLion

I have always been very hard on shoes. There is no way I have a sandal that goes back to 2007. The only older shoes I have are dress pumps, worn to sitting occasions like the opera. My sandals last between 1 and 3 seasons. This year I purchased a lot of sandals, but most of them for under $50. They are discounted from Amazon, a lot of them are older i.e. last year's styles. They are leather but by nature sandals are not too durable so I decided, why pay more. Last year I got a pair of Donald J. Pliner slide sandals and they wore out in under a year. I wore them for a total of maybe three months, maybe 30 times. Not a great CPW. No I don't track but I have a good idea of how much value I've extracted.

I'm impressed with your method. Thanks for starting this thread.

shedev

I'll get about 2 years wear from a shoe in heavy rotation. I'm at about 50 wears apiece on both the boots I wear for most of the winter. I'll have to replace at least one by the end of this year. The CPW is about $2 right now. For my summer sandals, I'm currently at about $10 CPW. I like your on the box tracking.

Pree

Active Member

Great analysis! This inspired me to track my CPW for shoes like I do for clothes. I definitely am aiming for 8 hours shoes and will not buy any more formal or dress shoes due to lack of wear and comfort. Comfortable 8 hour shoes are expensive so I am trying to be very critical when buying them.

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