I've been dancing with Arthur Murray for over 5 years and bought them as a cheap replacement after the last pair of training shoes wore out but I can already tell they won't last long. As with most dance shoes, order a shoe that is 1/2 or a size smaller than what you typically wear for street shoes as the leather will stretch over time. It's definitely poor quality as the heel doesn't look flat, the leather upper is badly shaped, but I'm a bit surprised that after a week of use, the laces start