New Richland shoe store gives runners and walkers a 3D high-tech fit
Fleet Feet, a national string of high-tech footwear stores, has opened in Richland’s prized retail location: Park Place.
Julie and Wade Pannell, the Spokane-based owners of five Washington Fleet Feet stores, opened their sixth on Feb. 16 at 620 George Washington Way, the apartment-and-retail complex at the entrance to Howard Amon Park.
A proper grand opening will be held in March.
Fleet Feet is a technical shoe store that provides custom fittings for runners, walkers, people with gait issues anyone else interested in foot health.
It joins the restaurant Graze and several other businesses that have moved into retail spaces built between the Park Place apartments and George Washington Way, a property long derided as “the pit” before it was redeveloped by the Crown Group.
“We like the visibility. We like the location. We like the landlord,” said Wade Pannell.
The Pannells own Fleet Feet stores in Spokane and Tacoma. The Richland outlet is their first infill location. They generally choose communities with populations of 150,000 or more. With more than 300,000, the Tri-Cities was a good fit, he said.
Fleet Feet carries a dozen brands of sneakers as well as insoles, socks and other garb to support serious and casual athletes.
It relies on high-tech scanners and employee know-how to match customers to the shoes and apparel that offer the right foot fit.
A 3D scanner measures size, length, width, instep and arch height. A foot plate detects how the customer’s feet move through the full step. That helps sales people select shoes, insoles and socks that work best for the individual.
“A lot of people believe things about their feet that may not be true,” Pannell said.
The right footwear supports fitness goals, he added.
“Over half of our customers are daily wearers who have pain in their feet. The right equipment helps address that.”
Pannell said Fleet Feet will take advantage of its parkside location and organize running-related activities, including its “Ignite” training group designed to help people go from the couch to a 5k in eight weeks.
The store employs six and is open 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Monday-Saturday, and noon-5 p.m., Sunday.
Sacramento-based Fleet Feet operates about 250 stores nationwide through a franchise model.
For more information, visit fleetfeet.com