Lucky, the Condé Nast publication about "shopping and style," released an iPhone application that lets shoppers locate a particular brand, color, and size of shoe in nearby stores.

The Lucky at Your Service app taps into inventories of stores carrying the 70+ types of shoes listed in the magazine's March shoe guide, then narrows the search down to those with the model in stock. It then uses iPhone's GPS capability — or an entered ZIP code — to zero in on stores closest to the user, Retailer Daily reports.

Lucky equipped a free call center with representatives that are able confirm whether the shoe is available, then have a salesperson set it aside, texting shoppers the final details.

Lucky at Your Service can only be used for shoes showcased in the March issue, but the magazine plans to update it to correspond with products in future issues.

Since its launch in 2000, Lucky has positioned itself as more of a fashion almanac for shoppers than a consumer publication. Condé Nast, which recently announced plans to shut down Domino — a sister pub that covers shopping and home décor — may be pushing the iPhone app as an added value for advertisers, writes the New York Times.

"From an advertising perspective, the advantage is clear," said Lucky publisher Gina Sanders. "With this kind of service, it's that much more insurance that the consumer will get into [stores that carry merchandise advertised in the magazine]."

Ad pages at the publication fell 11% in 2008, and future advertisers may be wary that consumers in a poor economy are losing interest in a magazine whose laser focus is shopping.