Natalie loves running marathons. On her last run, she noticed that her shoes were tilting her foot more to the outside instead of maintaining her balance. Unfortunately, the soles had worn down unevenly and she now can't run another race in those shoes. Natalie is at which stage of the consumer decision$-$making process?

a$.$ Evaluation of alternatives

b$.$ Information search

c$.$ Need recognition

d$.$ Postpurchase behaviour