Our Values are our Foundation

Our brand, Online store, and physical stores are New Zealand owned and operated. We are a franchise company with a head office and physical stores owned by franchisees.

Customers

Transparency

We are increasingly conscious of the requirement to be transparent and accountable. At SHOE SCIENCE we welcome this attitude as we pride ourselves on our values;

  • Our intent
  • Our ownership and community
  • Our staff
  • Our environment

Our Customer Intent

Our intent is - to help our customers achieve fitness in the context of their life balance. Fitness sits with work, family, and friends as the fundamentals. We believe a balanced life is a better life and this guides us to help your fitness in your life balance. 

Also, we encourage our clients to consider themselves as an 'athlete in the context of their life balance'. 99% of people have a bigger life than just exercise, therefore it is important to set realistic aspirations and expectations. If you are meeting the challenge of personal fitness, you are an athlete in our eyes. 

After visiting, we do want you to leave feeling well equipped, and like the athlete you are.

Our Ownership and Commitment to Community

Our brand, Online store, and physical stores are New Zealand owned and operated. We are a franchise company with a head office and physical stores owned by franchisees.

The SHOE SCIENCE vision is to move forward with Online and physical stores because we believe in both and the various options they provide to our customers. Our Online store offers amazing convenience from anywhere, and the physical stores offer the human sales experience. 

Often a company's Online service competes with the company's physical stores. At SHOE SCIENCE this is not the case. Both are integrated to ensure the longevity of community stores and the families supported by that store.

We also attempt to support brands and companies that are invested in New Zealand, employing New Zealanders.

Our Staff

Without our very talented and dedicated staff, we could not provide a service. Our staff is respected and valued as the footwear experts they are.

These are some of the ways we express this;

  • Living wage – all full-time staff are paid the NZ ‘living wage’ as a minimum.
  • Full-time staff work 5 day week to allow time for friends and family.
  • All our staff are trained and provided with continual education.
  • We operate a respectful workplace that does not tolerate inappropriate behavior.
  • We encourage a life balance between work, fitness, family, and friends.

Our Environment

Unfortunately, all running and walking shoes are manufactured overseas, so we have no option except to be part of a global community. However, there is still a lot we can do to minimize our footprint.

  • No single-use bags are provided. There are enough bags on the planet.
  • We have stopped providing chilled plastic bottled water.
  • We avoid ordering single pairs of shoes from suppliers to minimize our transport impact. Rather we place large orders for one courier trip.
  • All cardboard is recycled.
  • We do not stock any footwear that has an unacceptable short life span. It would be irresponsible to stock shoes that have been shipped around the world, to only last a few outings before going to landfills in NZ.
  • The environmental and human practices of the brands we stock are a growing part of our consideration.