Archies Thongs vary in their length

Archies Thongs vary in their length even though they have the same size number written on them:

Archies Thongs are made through the complex process of injection moulding. With injection moulding, there is natural manufacturing variation in the lengths of the thongs in that it is common that not all thongs are the perfectly the same length even though they have the same size number on them. For example, the true / correct length of an Archies Thongs Size 8 US as per our Size Chart is 26.0cm. However, we could measure the length of 100 pairs of Size 8 US and while many would measure exactly as per the true / correct length of 26.0cm, there would also be many pairs that may be up to 3-4mm shorter or larger than the true / correct length.

The benefits of manufacturing variation:

This natural manufacturing variance actually ends up being extremely advantageous in terms of getting the customer the best possible fit, as people’s feet do not perfectly follow a size chart and these small variances can account for ½ sizes and ¼ sizes etc, and if the customer tries on several pairs they can normally get a much better fit than if all the thongs were perfectly the same size.

Some tips for helping your customers get the right size in your practice or store:

  1. Using the thong the customer tried on as reference guide: If a customer tries a pair of thongs on and they are just a fraction to small or too big, then there is more than a good chance that the same size will fit them, you just need to find them a thong in the same size that is slightly smaller or bigger in length by taking the thong that was just a bit off the correct size and then using this as a reference guide to compare to the other thongs to get the correct size.

Click here to watch this quick video on how to use the thong as a reference guide to find the perfect fitting thong for your customer.

  1. Customers should always try on the pair they are going to buy: As many brands use different size systems and as the thongs can vary in their length even though they are the same size, never assume the thongs will fit a customer as its their normal size, because they just tried on one pair on or because they have already bought a pair of Archies Thongs and are just getting another pair. You should always get EVERY customer to try the pair that they are going to buy, if not, there is a risk the thong will not be the same length as the previous one.

Advice for ordering a pair for a specific customer:

The manufacturing variance in the length of the thongs is slightly more challenging (however very easy to fix) if you are ordering a pair for particular customer, as there is a risk that the pair we send will not be exactly the same length as the pair your customer tried on (even though it is the same size).

For example, if the customer tries on a pair that was 4mm shorter than the true / correct length and then we send a thong for this customer that is 4mm bigger than the true / correct length, whilst this 4mm is only a very small variation from the true / correct size, this equals a total of 8mm discrepancy in the length of the thong which will have an effect on getting the best possible fit for the customer.

If ordering a pair for a particular customer, we can just send as per your size request E.g – Archies Thongs US Size 8 and most of the time this will be ok. However, if you want to go the extra step for the customer to more or less guarantee that the size will be perfect for them, then in addition to putting their corresponding Archies Size in the online order form, we strongly recommend that you do one of the two following things:

1. Get the patient to try on a pair that fits them perfectly and provide us with an accurate measurement of the length of this pair in the Order Notes section of the online order form.  

Please note the pair that the measurement corresponds to in the order notes. E.g – Size 8 Black, Thong length, 25.7cm.  Please click here for instructions on how to accurately measure the length of Archies Thongs.  

When we have an accurate measurement of the length of a thong that fits the customer perfectly, we will simply send a thong that is an exact match to those measurements, thereby eliminating any risk of manufacturing variance.

2. If there is not a thong for the customer to try on that fits them perfectly, then the next best thing to do is to provide us with an accurate measurement of the customer’s foot length and provide this in the Order Notes section of the online order form.   

Please note the pair that the measurement corresponds to. E.g – Size 8 Black, Foot length, 25.0cm. You can use the Archies Thongs Size Conversion Chart to work out what their corresponding Archies Size is to insert into the online order form.  Please click here for instructions on how to accurately measure the length of Archies Thongs.

When we have an accurate measurement of the customer’s foot length, we send a thong that is 0.6 – 1.0cm bigger than the customer’s foot length which normally gets the fit perfect.