I usually love Doc martens and have never had an issue with their brand before. Granted I usually bought a higher priced pair of shoes. What the pictures don't show is the inside strap of the shoe is 2 pieces of leather with a strap of elastic between them. When my shoes showed up the elastic wasn't sewn to the bottom strap. So in stead of sending them back I sewed them up myself. And now I'm continuing to sew them about every few weeks. Kinda of a hassle. My recommendation is to buy Doc Martens, but not this pair. Their more expensive shoes don't have elastic and don't have the issue that this particular pair does.