Home Depot Requires "Shoes" in Stores

The Home Depot has signage at the entrances to their stores indicating that customers are required to wear "shoes." Wording clearly states "SHIRT AND SHOES REQUIRED," and an icon depicts a bare foot with the "no" symbol over it with a caption reading "SHOES REQUIRED." Along with prohibiting bare feet, the chain of stores also prohibits smoking, food and drink, and pets (excluding service animals).

While barefooters would likely be disappointed to learn that they are not to shop at The Home Depot unshod, the company is certainly within its rights to make such a limitation. This blogger can also understand why a store that sells hammers, saws, drill bits, nails, screws, razor blades and other incredibly barefoot-unfriendly objects would implement such a policy.

This information is shared for the sole purpose of assisting "Barefoot and Grounded" readers in making their own decisions about where to take their business. The author makes no claim to the quality of products or services of The Home Depot and neither encourages nor discourages the reader to shop at this establishment. For more information about policies of The Home Depot, the author recommends the reader contact their local store or corporate headquarters.

Walmart Has No Policy Prohibiting Bare Feet in Stores

I just received notice from a manager at my local Walmart that the company has no policy prohibiting bare feet in their stores nationwide. They also have no signage indicating that bare feet are prohibited.

After entering the same Walmart store last weekend and being asked by an employee to put on "shoes," I contacted Walmart corporate headquarters earlier this week via the company Web site. The message requested clarification of the company's official policy concerning their customers going barefoot in stores nationwide.

This morning I received a call from Sharon, a manager at the Blue Springs, Missouri, Walmart. She informed me that management was "unable to find" a policy prohibiting bare feet in hers or any other store.

This information is shared for the sole purpose of assisting "Barefoot and Grounded" readers in making their own decisions about where to take their business. The author makes no claim to the quality of products or services of Walmart and neither encourages nor discourages the reader to shop at this establishment. For more information about Walmart's policies, the author recommends the reader contact their local store or corporate headquarters.

The Art of Denial: Bare Feet May Be Offensive to Some People

Throughout my barefooting adventures, I've had a very pleasant experience overall. I've visited numerous retailers unshod without issue and have attended gatherings with family and friends without too many snarky remarks in good fun.

But this last weekend that changed. I was approached by staff at two different establishments and instructed that I needed to wear "shoes."

The first was at my local Walmart. This surprised me because I'd gone in there probably two dozen times totally barefoot and never had an issue. The greeters never said anything to me and no employees ever approached me requesting that I put on footwear. Then I entered the Garden Center entrance. I didn't make it past the bank of registers when a cashier there said I needed shoes. After I asked why, she tried to tell me that it was a "policy" of Walmart's. I told her that I'd been in there more than a dozen times barefoot and that nothing was posted prohibiting bare feet. She said to me that it's posted at the store's main entrances, but I quickly retorted that it's not -- I've looked. To move on past her, and because we had some quick shopping to do, I put on my emergency flip flops (which, oddly enough, I carried in with me for only the first time). After leaving the Garden Center and getting to the section of store in which we needed to shop, I removed my flops and carried on the rest of the trip without incident.

Later on in the weekend we visited the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City with my brother and his family, who were visiting from out of town. After making it past the "Visitor Services" person (i.e. security guard) at the door, we made our way into the contemporary section of the museum. In the first room another guard approached me and said I'd have to put "shoes" on if I was going to keep looking around. I asked why and was told that it was a "health" issue. I kindly informed the guard that no such health regulations exist. He quickly said he was going to fetch a "supervisor" and walked away. I put my flip flops on and we moved onto the next room of the exhibit. Shortly after that I saw the previous guard with another man who I could only assume was the "supervisor." I motioned him over to me and we had a conversation.

To keep a long story a bit shorter, he informed me that he wouldn't be able to show me before I left their written policy that bare feet aren't allowed but he'd be happy to send it to me later. I asked him why it wasn't posted at the entrance and he informed me that not every policy can be posted. He shared with me that pets aren't allowed but that I didn't see that posted either. I quickly pointed out to him that pets are addressed on the museum Web site, however -- bare feet weren't. I had checked. In the end he tried to tell me that he didn't want to take the risk that other museum goers might be "offended" by me. I held out my hand and asked, "so can someone be offended by that, too?" He said that my claim doesn't follow social "norms." Finally, I reminded him that an art museum's job is often to challenge norms with diverse artwork and that I found it perplexing that their guests weren't allowed to be so diverse. Honestly, if a statue can show its bare feet AND penis (an actual piece at the museum, pictured here), why can't I walk around barefoot?

I'm in the process of writing a letter to the museum sharing my history as a barefooter and asking them to question their policy (or lack thereof). If they choose to reject visitors in bare feet that's certainly their prerogative, but something should be posted.

I Had My Bare Foot Fourth

Since I haven't posted in a few days, I wanted to put up a quick blog entry about my splendid weekend of going barefoot.

Friday evening was, what I consider, my first really big "primetime" barefoot outing since earnestly starting this unshod gig a few months ago: The Kansas City Royals game. Sure, I'd been to various retailers where a few hundred people were shopping (and maybe a few dozen actually saw me barefoot). I'd been to parties at family and friends' houses, but a Major League Baseball game? This was HUGE. Like 35,000-plus-in-attendance huge.

I'll be honest: I had a few concerns about barefooting at the game. How many broken bottles would I have to avoid stepping on while walking in and out of the stadium? Would I even get past the gate unshod or be forced by security to wear my "emergency" flip flops that were in the diaper bag? Would my feet get stepped on while mingling through crowds of people over the course of the evening? And just how would my feet hold up being barefoot on concrete and asphalt for such a long period?

It turns out, barefooting at the ball game was great! The parking lot was pretty litter-free on the way in, security let me through with no problem and my toes never got stepped on (even in the crush of people to get out after the game).


My feet held up really well. I was surprised. I actually did walk around a lot because my kids and I went on an excursion to Kauffman Stadium's new "outfield experience," which has a number of family-friendly shops and attractions. After also visiting other family members with seats on the other side of the stadium, I ended up circling the entire place barefoot by the time we returned to our seats. That's 360 degrees around a baseball stadium. Barefoot. Oh, did I mention I had my 20-month old daughter on my shoulders most of that time? In the end, my feet were quite dirty, but the drizzling rain that came on our way out to the lot helped wash away most of the grime. I avoided all the tailgaters' trash and made it safely to the van.

On Saturday our nation celebrated Independence Day, and my feet expressed their independence by continuing to go bare. Our family attended the local fireworks display and then went over to my in-laws' where we shot off our own fireworks. In the end, the feet held up great!

Sunday was another barefoot visit to church, then in the afternoon my wife threw me a belated surprise birthday party at a local park. Still unshod, I enjoyed seeing good friends and playing with the kids in the park's water "sprayground." It was only during these activities that my feet started to complain to me. More specifically, the ball of my left foot directly below my big toe hurt some. It was the skin itself that was painful, not the muscles. I would later discover that the skin on both feet were slightly abraised. No problem, though. After soaking them at home later and resting them overnight, they've felt good today. I chalk it up to the necessary work of toughening up my soles.

In the end, I was barefoot this weekend from about 9:30 a.m. Friday through 7:45 a.m. Monday. That's a little more than 70 hours of completely bare feet and I loved it! My feet got to breathe and enjoy the ground below me and it helped me to enjoy a great weekend with great people.