Zerep

I can’t wear heels. I adore the classy-​lady noise they make when I walk in them but I do not seem to have the fortitude to complete a full night of tottering around. Am I built differently than other women? Are my legs unusually lazy? Are my inner ear canals unusually dizzy? Why cant I clop along at least as well as a tranny does? Some girls I know LIVE in heels. They walk in straight lines and even smile or chat with friends while wearing them. To achieve this feat, I am convinced they are also secretly LIVING on cocaine. Whatever. I have resigned myself to kitten heels when it comes to getting gussied up.
That said, I borrowed a book from the library about weeding out your wardrobe. It said that I was lacking a really sexy high-​heel. It said I was hardly even a woman and that I’d feel self-​confident 24 hours a day if I could manage to find the perfect high heel. Ugh. Thanks a lot, book.
I began the hunt. I went into every shoe store in Dublin looking for this non-​existent beast called the ‘comfortable heel’. In the end I settled on either a nude platform heel from Aldo at € 57 or some patent grey platform heels from Zerep at only € 22. I was pleasantly surprised to find the ones at Zerep more comfortable and the guys at Zerep very patient as I tried on about 10 pairs before finally making my purchase! I can actually walk around on these things without ending up like a barefoot cave-​woman at the end of the night.
The night I wore them I went to a pub, then to a club for dancing, and finally walked around aimlessly in the cobblestone streets looking for a cab home. I only fell over once! It was only when I took them off at home did I realize my poor tootsies were smashed, red, and throbbing. The magical heels made my feet so numb I hadn’t realized the pain. Good enough for me!
I really dont think I am made for the world of sexy heels :(. Still, if I had a short distance to go or a sit-​down dinner that called for extra fancy shoes I might drag these things out of the closet for one more night on the town.

In better times Zerep was chockers with the truly strange and over priced footwear that was best seen under flashing stage lights. There were tamer (but still dear) work heels, runners and boots for men and women as well. The teens loved it, the shoppers crowded it, and this twig of the Zerep shoe empire seemed destined for a long life of pushing cheap shoes at top prices.
Today Zerep is still selling from its Liffey Street address, but perhaps in reduced circumstances. The selection is weighted heavily towards no-​name brands, some of which use genuine leather to form the tall winder boots and spindly heels still crowding the wall and floor units.
But it looks as though someone’s caught on to their game, because when I came hunting and pecking along the sales I was the only person in the store (and was again the next time I came through).
Mind you, I did snag a bargain… but what sort? For the obscenely low price of € 10 I grabbed a pair of bright gold heels with one spike slightly off set (forcing me to toddle on my toes) that I was able to wear once and discard. I do feel awful for the shoppers who cleared the rest of the stock before it hit the sale rack.
I’d say the only draw here is what’s on sale –stock they’re never short on here.

If it’s comedy you’re looking for in footwear, then Zerep have it in spades! These are the guys that sell those awesome, 14″ tall rubber soled, knee high, leather boots with the studding, and the flames, oh, and tassels, don’t forget the tassels.
It’s a big shop and these shoes only represent a niche in their market, but it’s such a loud niche it’s hard to see anything else. There are plenty of more normal shoes and a few that are steps on the ladder between normality and flamboyant hair-​metal insanity.
The prices are low and the deals are many, so it’s worth stopping off here for shoes as well as laughs.