FAQs
ARE YOUR SHOES FOR WOMEN AS WELL AS MEN?
Yes they are! Our shoes are unisex - or multisex - and they're worn by women and men alike. We have just one sizing scale for everyone, and we make everything from tiny size 34s to humongous size 51s. You can read our size guide for more.
-
I'M NOT CONFIDENT ORDERING SHOES ONLINE, AS I FEAR I'LL ORDER THE WRONG SIZE... CAN YOU HELP?
Yes we can.
Our sizing process is correct about 94% of the time, so if you follow our instructions, here, then it's very likely that you'll pick the right size.
We're different to most shoe brands, in that we encourage customers to actually measure their feet. It's an easy process, but we'd be happy to go through it with you and we can even look at your measurements and foot outline, if you'd like our opinion? We've measured 1000s of feet, so we've gotten pretty good at it. But ultimately, if you don't get the right size first time, it's easy to exchange for a new size.
Just email us (hello@atheistberlin.com) if you have any questions about sizing.
-
CAN I EXCHANGE MY SHOES?
Absolutely. If your shoes have only been tried on (rather than worn outside) and they're still in the same condition you received them, then we'd be happy to make an exchange or give you a refund. Just email us to get the ball rolling.
-
HOW DOES SHIPPING WORK?
Shipping (via DHL) is calculated on the checkout page and costs between €7 and €38, depending where you live.
However, some customers get free shipping, in sympathy for the possibility they might have to pay customs duties. For example, customers in Switzerland, Norway and the UK pay nothing for shipping, and our North American customers get half-priced shipping (although USA customers should note that they won't be charged any customs unless they spend more than €800).
Shipping within Europe is between €7 and €15
Shipping to Norway, UK, Switzerland is €15.
Shipping to North America is €20 (a half-priced special for our US chums, as shipping to USA costs us closer to €40).
And shipping to the rest of the world is €30.
AND SHIPPING WHEN EXCHANGING SHOES?
We're still too small a business to offer totally free worldwide shipping on returns. BUT we do want to help as much as we can and, so, if you get your shoes and decide you'd like to exchange them for another size or colour, we'll split the costs of making that exchange happen. You cover the cost of shipping the original shoes back to us, then we'll pay the cost of shipping replacement shoes to you in return. We'll do this only for your first exchange, lest someone get into a spiral of exchanging shoes and bankrupt us (and probably themselves).
-
HAS BREXIT RUINED EVERYTHING?
Well, not everything. But it has made things more complicated for our UK customers.
Here's what we know... (and it's a bit of an evolving story, so we don't have all the answers quite yet).
The price UK customers see in our webshop includes 19% German VAT. However, this 19% VAT will be refunded to you shortly after you order and, instead, you will be asked by the UK authorities to pay UK Import VAT (you'll receive a letter outlining the charges and explaining how you can pay).
There should be no customs charges on your order, because the shoes originate in the EU and there is in an agreement in place that no tarifs should be charged on EU made shoes. We spell this out to the UK customs people by way of a "REX Declaration of Preferential Origin", which we place in a plastic envelope on the outside of your shipment.
HOWEVER, in some cases UK Customs has been ignoring this declaration and asking our customers to pay ca. 25 to 30 GBP in customs charges. They are incorrect to do so, and if it happens, we urge you to protest the charges (details of how to do so are including on the letter sent by Parcelforce telling you what you have to pay). Unfortunately, you need to pay all the charges they ask before making a protest, which sucks.
And, finally, Parcelforce will charge you a 12 GBP processing fee for handling all this complexity (very badly in our estimation).
In short, our UK customers will end up paying about 15 to 20 GBP extra (if UK customs don't erroneously charge a tariff) and about 40 to 45 GBP extra if they do.
But we try to lighten the load by offering free shipping to all our UK customers.
Sorry we don't have more absolute certainty yet, but please email us if you have any questions and we'd be super grateful to hear your experiences if they deviate from what we describe above!
ANY SHOE CARE TIPS?
Yes indeed; here you'll find lots of tips on how to care for your shoes.
-
WHAT IF I EVER ENCOUNTER A PROBLEM?
It shouldn't happen, but if it does, just email us (hello@atheistberlin.com) and we'll sort it out.
-
ARE THEY OK IN THE RAIN AND THE SNOW?
Totally. Our shoes are Berlin proof and Berlin is a very wet and occasionally snowy city. Like any leather shoes, water sits in the surface of the shoe before drying, but it won’t allow your feet to get wet and water does no damage to the shoe at all.
-
WHY ARE THEY SO EXPENSIVE?
We wish we could make our shoes cheaper, but they’re really not so expensive for the quality of the shoe. Other brands might charge 2 or 3 times what we do for the same quality. But it’s only because we sell directly to our customers, with no middle-men, that we can afford to sell them as the cost we do. Here’s a link to where all the money goes when you buy our shoes.
-
WHY ARE THEY SO REASONABLY PRICED?
Because we only sell direct to our customers, so we don't have to split profits with unnecessary middle-men. Even the most expensive shoes in stores - think €500 plus - probably have a lower cost of production than ours. But we still manage to keep our prices in the €200 to €250 price range. It's also a nod to our origins; we were crowdfunded into existence by patrons who wouldn't typically care for luxury / expensive brand names, amongst them many students and others who've never spent more than €100 on a pair of shoes in their lives. And it just feels wrong to us to leave the people who gave us our business behind getting involved in a luxury arms race.
