Clarks Shoes - Perfect for little feet! (Clarks)

Member Name: Clarks Guy

Product:	Clarks
Date:	16/12/08 (722 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fitted perfectly to your child!

Disadvantages: Costly, but worth it!

As a employee of Clarks, I work on the kids floor part time fitting in with my a level studies, Im a trained fitter so I know what problems parents might have when they have been at Clarks before, I'll give an honest review below.

The Advantages of Clarks:

Obviously the shoe is fitted by trained fitters (if not the fitter will ask their supervisor to check them, part of the '50 first fits' where their first 50 or so fits are checked by senior members of staff to make sure they are fitted well, by the end of this the trainee will have got the mastery of fitting and are usually sent to a training course for more info and to learn about the foot!

The fitted shoes are perfect for children with wide or narrow feet, (Usually the D, E for the narrow, and G and H for wide feet while F is sort of the standard), note that Nike Trainers and all other shops will vary in size compared to Clarks due to Clarks allowing 'growth room' for growing feet :) (A size 7 nike trainer might be a size 6 and a half in Clarks)

Whats this widths? D E F G H?

Well basically it's just how wide your child's foot is, a extremely narrow foot is a D, which Clarks only have a few, and I mean few (I think theres about 4 styles so your child might not get a real say in what they want, maybe pop an insole in and try a Size E). A size E is common, but it's still narrow, Clarks don't really have a wide amount as size F or a G but we still have quite a few styles (70 or so), and if they don't have it, try an insole in a F fitting.

The 'most common' fit is F, the standard fit for most children, Clarks stock the most in a size F, it's not wide nor narrow, in the middle!

A bit wider is a G, wide but not too wide, also very common and Clarks stock quite a bit of these too.

The widest Clarks stock is a H fitting, very wide (although we do measure upto a I fitting - which is VERY VERY wide and your child may have to try a few sizes up im afraid or go to a specialist online shop) Clarks do stock quite a bit of H as well, about the same as the E (70 or so).

The Quality of Shoes:

Clarks shoes are usually leather, or suede, made in various countries, they are very durable when used properly, but if your child likes to play football every day or walks in a way that scrapes against the floor then obviously it will be damaged, they have a few selected shoes which are Goretex, which is water-resistant so your child will be water protected. Overall the Clarks shoes have great quality.

The Stock and Range of Shoes:

I work in a store that is one of the largest in the UK (one of top 5) so we usually have good stock, but incase you don't you can get your feet checked and you can order instore in selected stores or online and get them delivered to your local store where they can be fitted or taken by yourself on a SF (Self Fit) where if something happens to your child when they are wearing the Clarks Shoes, Clarks and their employees cannot be sued for it.

Ranges of shoes, many people are happy with the choices available but it's not a fashion shop, there are shoes for kids with toys inside (Dolly Shoes for girls or Mutronix Shoes for boys) which is usually the attraction, although I've personally found that those toy shoes aren't great for comfort as other ones!

Shoecare (Caring for your Shoe)

At Clarks, they don't provide instructions in the box how to protect your shoe/boots, but the staff give you all the information which i'll list below:

For Black School Shoes: Use the Shumagic, which contains a high-dye content (80 percent) and works like painting really, renews the colour while providing protection for the scuffs.

Boots: Boots come in a variety of colours, Most popular are black, Plum and Brown, you can use the matching colour Shumagic on black, plum and various other colours to protect it, you can also use the Protector Spray, which helps keep the colour on, while protecting the boot from rain!

Sports Trainers: You can't actually machine wash any of the trainers, so please use the Clarks Sports-Gel, works on basically any trainers, so you can use them on your fred perry's, nike or adidas and obviously your Clarks, neutral - just ask your sales assistant how to use it.

Service and Sales Assistants:

Clarks, when busy operate by a Ticket System similar to Argos, first come, first served, grab a ticket and you'll be put in a queue and when your number pops up, somebody will be along with you. The people that I work with are very friendly and will entertain the kids and get friendly with them, you might get a grumpy one once in a while but most of the staff are lovely.

First Shoes:

I'll deffo recommend Clarks for First Shoes, your baby needs the right fitting for growing up, you don't really need the shoes when your baby is crawing (barefeet is fine!) but when they start crawling and then cruising leading up to walking, you need them fitted perfectly, and if your child has narrow feet or wide, a standard fit from Mothercare or other places may not be the best!

After they have been fitted, your very first pair of Clarks Shoes will have a Free Photograph, they'll give you a frame and everything, you do need to fill in a form to register your child which will take about 2 minutes, but your in for a chance to win free shoes for a year.

Disadvantages:

Price

Well you get what you pay for at Clarks, they are expensive but are totally worth it, if you don't have that much money, i'll tell you to please, please buy Clarks fitted shoes when your child is young as they need vital protection for their shoes to grow or they might need to see the doctor if they do not grow as much as they should.

Thats about it for the disadvantages.

Total:

Clarks are totally worth it, they are normally referred by mothers/dads to their friends as they don't really advertise on TV anymore, but their reputation is great, and their shoes are great too; the price may be a concern but you really get what you paid for.

So please, do buy Clarks Shoes!

Summary: Clarks shoes are great, but are costly - recommended for everybody