Avalon Dance Shop

The lady was really nice and helpful!
Got freeform shoes that fits perfectly and she takes the time to let you try on a few sizes before you make your decision. Will be back!

I have been buying my dance shoes from Avalon Dance shop for almost ten years. The owner has years of experience in fitting dance shoes and we very quickly found the size and brand that works best for my feet, and level of dance both for Latin and Standard. On occasion I have purchased shoes elsewhere while traveling and have never been entirely satisfied that the fit is right.
It is completely unreasonable to expect that a shop would allow someone to return a used item for a full refund.
Based on multiple visits to this store over the years it the current and past locations, I can state that the service and fittings that I have received has been excellent and extremely professional, the shop is well stocked and I have never failed to find what I needed.
In fact I wrote an article about Avalon for my website — you can find it at

Avalon is an owner-​operated shop. When you visit the store you get personalized one on one service. Sometimes the owner is tired over overwhelmed, but she is committed to her customers. It is understandable that returns are not allowed on used items — the owner cannot resell them so it would be a net loss for her. As for selection — suppliers put a limit on how many retailers can carry their products in a specific area. If someone else sells Motionwear, for example, within a certain km radius, then Avalon cannot carry it. People need to remember that they need the local retailers, but so many shop online or in the states, that these retailers are having a tough time surviving, so they may have to charge a bit more. Overall, the owner is pleasant and dedicated to dance in the city… make your own decision, but not cool to refer to someone as «the old lady,» you will be old one day too!

We don’t shop here regularly because it is a bit of a road trip for us to come here. Besides that, their price is not competitive at all. In fact, they are a lot more expensive than Forever Dancewear in North Vancouver which we go to all the time. Forever Dancewear has better pricing and the staff is always happy and always makes us feel very welcome. Forever Dancewear is also very clean and neat with a wide array of selections.
I base this particular experience on yesterday’s purchase.
I asked my daughter to call ahead to make sure they are open and that they have what we need. Pro Flex size 6 4X. The owner/​old lady confirms she has them.
We purchased them and left. After we left, my daughter realized the owner/​old lady sold her the wrong pair of ballet shoes. My daughter have no choice but to dance in them. She called Avalon after the class and left them a message about the shoes asking for a refund.
Next day, my daughter called Avalon again and owner/​old lady told her to come in and said the ballet shoes were in the wrong box and that she will exchange them for her. When we got there she refused to refund her because my daughter was being honest and told her she danced in them. She told my daughter it is entirely my daughter’s fault that she wore them therefore she cannot exchange them. What really puzzles me is that she blamed my daughter entirely and took no responsibility at all for selling her the wrong pair of shoes to begin with. This is her bread and butter, she should know that they were «Pro» and not «Pro Flex».
1. She sold my daughter the wrong pair of shoes
2. She blamed it entirely on my daughter and took no responsibility for selling the wrong shoes to begin with
3. we had called ahead and she had told us she had the shoes
4. we had driven there twice from W. Van and then did not get we were promised.
From my point of view Avalon has failed to honour their end of the bargain and WE will never shop there again and WE will never refer anybody to go shop there again.
1. Their prices are not competitive but more expensive than Forever Dancewear.
2. Bad service.
3. Misleading about what they have even if you call in advance.
4. Messy store.
5. Lousy selections.
6. Unpleasant owner/​old lady.
7. Has very bad bedside manners.
8. Unprofessional.
9. Ask for something specific but sells you another thing.
10. Cannot be trusted.
We have heard so many complaints from other patrons of Avalon but we always never let that stop us from going there. But now that she majorly dishonour herself by not honouring her words that to me is the ultimate business faux pas. If I could give her zero star I would.

Great service. Well, I guess that depends on the mood of the lady owner. She was very helpful today and having struck up a conversation with her, she is just a sweet old lady trying to stay afloat in this very competitive market. With the escalating rent and gentrification of the area over the years, she has worked hard to stay in business and I encourage all of you to support small local businesses in the area. I understand some of the reviewers have had some negative things to say about the shop, but having taken the time to speak with her on a personal level, I understand how a 70 plus year old woman can be a bit grumpy on certain days. Please give her a chance. She has quite the story behind her struggles and I am glad I made the effort in finding out a bit more about her. Good people.

I was just thrilled with this independent dance wear shop and even more thrilled with the service!
I went in to buy some basics for my niece and came out with just what I was looking for. I believe I was being served by the owner who was just lovely. I highly recommend you go in for a browse if you need some dance wear, which is really great for any work out! Prices were fair and the selection was excellent, a solid choice of basics and some fun pieces thrown in!
I’ll be back for myself!

I went to Avalon with my wife to find her a pair of dance shoes. The selection and prices were good. Staff was helpful and knowledge about dance shoes and fitting. No hard sell or upsell on the shoes which was nice.
My wife ended up special ordering a shoe because she needed a slightly better fit, and Avalon made the order without extra fees. Arrived about a week later.
All in all a good shopping experience.

I’ve been to Avalon Dance Shop twice before, and after my last experience, I’m not sure if I’ll go back again. Why the 2 stars? Avalon specializes in ballroom dance items (I don’t dance ballroom), and they seem to have a lot of costumes/​shoes available, more than the Dance Shop (a huge mix) or Limbers in Surrey (mostly ballet).
The first time, I bought a pair of tights. There is no refund policy, no exchange or anything, so you need to be sure that the item that you want is the right one.
In terms of price, I think that it’s around the same price as Dance Shop and equivalent stores, but other stores may be cheaper. Because of their policy, you may want to shop around first.
The second time, I called in regarding a Motionwear undergarment, in the nude colour, in a size Medium. The lady over the phone said that she had it, and mentioned something about having «Over-​Unders» as well (those are undergarments by Capezio.)
This seemed great to me, because the Dance shop didn’t have any and I wasn’t willing to go out to Surrey.
After having lunch, I went into the store and the lady gave me the item. I asked to try it on, and she showed me to the changerooms at the back. They’re just a room with curtains, like Limbers. I found it a bit dark in that area though, because they also had costumes/​clothes in that area. My friend, who came along, was looking around. We’re pretty much the same size, and she needed one as well.
After trying it on, I didn’t know if the cutting would be okay. I was looking specifically for the brand Motionwear, and she had given me this one.
I asked my friend to take a look at it, and she had said it wouldn’t work, so while I was changing, she went back out to ask if they had the Motionwear brand. The lady said «No.» At this point, my friend got a little aggravated because over the phone, the lady had said that they did.
The lady started to try and sell this undergarment, saying that «oh, it probably would work» and things like that.
She ended up calling the Dance Shop, where we had been earlier, and asked about the Motionwear thing. She asked if it was a brand, and similar questions. I was still changing, so I didn’t know exactly what was happening.
She passed the phone to my friend, who politely explained the situation over the phone, and the lady at the Dance shop seemed nice over the line (I couldn’t hear).
At this point, the lady at the store then told me to bring in the leotard to try it on. They didn’t have a similar model at the store. Apparently, she didn’t carry Motionwear. We left, after explaining that because of the return policy, we couldn’t buy it, because what if it didn’t work? We wouldn’t get our money back.
The lady at the counter seemed pretty aggravated and frustrated. So were we!
Once we got to the car, we called another dance shop, this time making sure to explain it well. The lady from Beatle Dance Shop asked if we had the style number, because there are many different styles. She also told us to bring our own leotard, because it may stretch.
Well. That was a waste of a trip.
I think that Avalon is generally a good store if you know what you want to get, and if it’s an in and out purchase and you are not planning to return.
They do not stock Bloch pointe shoes, which are the type that I use, (mostly Capezio and Grishko) and they don’t have the brand of leotard I wear (Motionwear).
They seem to have a plethora of ballroom things, though.
I asked a friend about this store who does ballroom, and she said that she didn’t shop there because of the service.
So Avalon Dance Shop, if you want my business, please work on your customer service and offering more items in a different brand.