” first day with them, for whatever reasons, the heels completely fell apart…literally melted and stuck to the ground as I was walking… ”
I have had shoes that did this, Seems they are like peanut butter, they last a long time but have a definite shelf life. the plastic/rubber just deteriorates after a while (they were really nice/expensive shoes too).
Maybe if they are vacuum packed LOL.
But at the same time I have had Costco Sneakers in the garage 10 years and they wear just fine, it a materials thing I guess.
