One size doesn't fit all: longtime friends hope shoe store for women with larger feet finds its niche.(THE STARTUP)(Personal account)

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TONI HALL ALWAYS HAD A HARD TIME FINDING shoes. At 5 feet 6 inches and wearing size 12 footwear, the Washington, D.C., native would often have to go out of her way to find shoes that fit. "I know that this is a struggle for me, and probably for many other women out there," Hall recalls thinking. "So, I just had this idea that if I had a shop that catered exclusively to us it would be a relief from the normal retail atmosphere."

However, she didn't have the money for what she really wanted--to open a retail location at a shopping mall. So Hall, now 28, rented out the front office of an interior design studio in Gaithersburg, Maryland, in April 2010. While the 400-square-foot space may have been affordable, it was a warehouse/office space within an industrial complex …