I’m hot.  It is Day 3 in a heat wave.  Humid.  That’s enough to make The Shoe Lady rant about anything.

But HEY.  Gotta say.  The First Lady of the USA should have more choice in shoes.  The internet thinks Michelle Obama is a size 11.5.  But The Shoe Lady was told by the Chicago shoe store merchant who sold her shoes that she is a size 12.  The Shoe Lady, who measures as a size 11.5 but opts for a size 12 because there are no 11.5’s to choose from, understands the plight of FLOTUS.  (First Lady of the United States)

So why must she, must I, must tall women everywhere, have so little choice in shoes?

The average shoe size for women in the USA is officially, this year, a size 9.   While many brands start at size 5, most start at size 6.  And most stop at size 10.

It is really too hot to start lecturing about the meaning of a bell curve.  But if the shoe manufacturers start at size 6 and stop at size 10 and the average size is size 9…..

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE!!!

If the shoe manufacturers wanted the core market for women’s shoes, they would make most of their shoes size 9.  It costs a lot of money to make a style in different sizes.  So The Shoe Lady understands why they don’t want to expand their size production too much.  But start with size 9, go up a size and down a size.  Then they are making sizes 8, 9, 10.  Expand the market more, then they are making 7, 8, 9,10, 11.    Expand the market just one more time so they are making only 7 whole sizes:  6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12.

The Shoe Lady is happy.  The FLOTUS is happy.   My tall sisters who wear size 13, 14, 15+ are still not happy, but maybe those great shoe manufacturers like Naturalizer and Bellini and Bella Vita that now make almost everything to size 12 will expand their sizes too?

The Shoe Lady feels better now.

for her size 12 feet.