I saw an episode of the Golden Girls about that very thing, Shana....
The way I look at it is:
Shoes are HARD. They are by far the hardest thing for me to shop for. I don't walk the same way indoors as I do in my everyday life. For one thing, I'm running about on my feet for at least an hour a day, usually much more. For another thing, I'm getting around on hard concrete, not a nice carpeted interior. I take longer strides and walk much faster for a sustained period of time which I simply don't do at home or anywhere else indoors. There is just no substitute. I can't tell you how many times a pair of shoes has passed the "walk around at home" test with flying colors, only to destroy my feet when I actually take them on the road.
If I kept every pair of shoes that failed the street walking test, I'd end up losing hundreds if not thousands of dollars. In fact, I *did* end up doing just that. I have a whole bag of shoes I can't wear that I need to take to the consignment store. I thought all of them were great at the time. Wrong.
But several hundred or even thousand dollars is not even a chip in the shoulder for a major corporation, so I don't feel guilty about it. I'm not dishonest: I always acknowledge that the shoes are worn and I always try my best not to get them scuffed, but sometimes it's just not avoidable. If I have to pay a tiny bit more for that peace of mind, I'm willing to do it.
One thing I did discover recently is that I can take shoes to the mall and at least get some idea of comfort. The mall is indoors but it's an expansive space for me to walk around in. It's not flop proof but it's better than home or the office.
