A method for providing a custom shoe to a consumer, including identifying at least one characteristic about a consumer that is present within the retail store, the at least one characteristic relating to the consumer's foot. Also included is selecting a plurality of pre-fabricated footwear components based on the at least one characteristic, assembling the plurality of prefabricated footwear components into a custom shoe that is customized to the consumer, and presenting the custom shoe to the consumer before the customer leaves the retail store.