Returning children's trainers to Clark's?

bubblegumcola

Where are the best shops to get startrite shoes then?? I've only seen them in John Lewis, bit of a trek for me to get into my Glasgow one.

frogglet

I must say I have found the fitters to vary in their expertise and I have returned shoes that have developed creases due to being too wide and have been told shoes are fine when they are obviously a poor fit. Although on the whole their school shoes have lasted well and I have generally been satisfied with the service and quality. My daughter is now in ladies shoe sizes and I bought her some for £45 which split after 8 days wear, which I took back and got a refund

Abbafan1972

I sometimes don't see the point in Clarks measuring your childs feet. They usually don't have the style you want in the that size and quite often you end up buying something that is too big. I would like to know where to buy Startrite shoes. We are in Birmingham and don't have a John Lewis.

lindsey27

My daughter has very narrow feet and I buy Aster shoes for school. They are expensive but last the whole school year.

amandada

bubblegumcola wrote: »

Where are the best shops to get startrite shoes then?? I've only seen them in John Lewis, bit of a trek for me to get into my Glasgow one.

Have a look on http://www.startriteshoes.com/ , there's a box for inputting your area to find your nearest stockist. I live in Dundee and my nearest stockist is Perth but I've always been happy to go there.

I got on ok getting a refund, despite the assistant being determined to argue the toss about the definition of the word "fit":rolleyes:

I've had Aster shoes for dd in the past and they've been really good too

newmommyjen

http://www.startriteshoes.com/fitting
Some pointers on how to find the correct size.
My sister in law took my 3 yr old to get measured.
They said he is now a 9.
Hmm i have got 9s in the house and no way his feet are tat big, i got him to try them on. He is more on the lines of a size 8.

Print your own foot gauge
http://www.startriteshoes.com/fitting/measure-at-home/how-to-fit-your-childs-shoes#section:downloadable_gauges

*speed-queen*

hi guys, have just been reading this thread and others to do with fitting kids shoes, and i just thought id write a little response to what i have read

I am a clarks trained fitter, and have been for over 3 1/2 years even though i am only 20
i love my job, and do the best that is physically possible to fit a child with the correct size

on one thread i read " have you noticed how they ask what size they were in before, so they can just add on a half size to sell you more"

thats is not true, yes i always ask what size the child was in before, but thats because it is what i have been trained to do to guage the right measurement for a child, if i measure a child as a 9G when currently they are in say a 10G then obviously there is something wrong there,
but if i hadnt have asked, i wouldnt know that this size was a missreading would I?
and the point where you can get measured 3 times in one week and get told different sizes each time,
measuring feet is not an exact science, it is only a guideline, it varys on whether you use an electric measure, a hand held measure, what socks they are wearing, how hot theire feet are!
just like bra sizes, i bet you have bras in a few diffferent sizes but they all fit, its the same with shoes
the most important thing isnt the actuall measurement, its that you go away with a shoe that fits, all shoes vary
with a wider foot, they may have to have, or be measured as a half size bigger than they actually are to accomodate the width of the foot

Although I am a clarks trained fitter, and sell clarks shoes, i actually work at an independant shoe shop! we sell startrite, and a couple of italian brands aswell. some brands/ styles fit or suit certain children more than others. i think working at an indipendant shoe shop makes it easyer to get a pair of shoes that fit right as you have a wider choice of styles to try.

Clarks do not make trainers in an E fitting, but i do often find that an F fitting in a slimmer style fits perfectly well. For a slim foot, startrite are really good for fit, however startrite shoes fit around half a size bigger than clarks so bear that in mind. annoyingly startrite trainers fit about half a size smaller than clarks!

i kinda think that whatever brand it is, as long as its fitted by someone who knows what they are doing it doesnt matter if its clarks, if it fits it fits, if it doesnt it doesnt, try something else


i do feel that younger fitters dont get treated the same as an older fitter, sometimes justifiebly but not in all cases

i often get asked by the customer if i am sure they fit, or if i can get someone else to check them, and i know its because of my age, ive actually been fitting shoes longer than 2 of the older ladies at my shop, and they often ask me for help or my opinion

overall really shoe fitting is not an exact science, its all based on guides and opinions as you cant tell what a childs foot can feel, or rely on what a child says feels ok.

with regards to the refund, if they are badly fitted, then they should give you a refund,
i know our shop would, if they say no i would complain

but yeah rant over

i agree that clarks shoes are a bit expensive

but i definatly think its worth it

i know when i start having kids they will all wear fitted shoes and nothing else

xXx

sooty&sweep

Hi

I've bought both of my child Clarks shoes from a Clarks factory outlet so considerably cheaper than the main Clarks shop but I've always been happy with fit and quality

bubblegumcola

In the 11 years I have been buying Clarks shoes for my kids I have never been sold a pair half a size bigger just for the sake of it. I hadn't read that Speed-queen so it must be on another thread. Doesn't the fitter just ask you the size they are in to see if that is what they are still measuring and if they still have plenty of room in it. You can quite clearly see the guage when they are checking the size of their feet anyway so it would be difficult to mislead you, I can't imagine why they would anyway they have reputation to keep! - I agree its not an exact science. Every kids feet are different, mine all have high insteps and two have skinny feet while the younger has wide feet.

I'd far rather have them measured and buy proper leather shoes than buy cheap textile shoes which make your kids feet sweat, and you can go to the factory shops too if you are lucky enough to have one near you.

I am curious to see the difference between Startrite and Clarks as I have always been loyal to Clarks......having had a quick look on Startrite website there seems to be a few stockists on the South Side of Glasgow so will check them out. I do go past Perth quite often so may try the shop there too when I have time.

3_cheeky_princesses

I have always brought my children Clarks. I have never had a problem until september when i brought my dd (5yrs) her school shoes. She wore them for a day, got home and her feet were blistered and there was a thick red sore line round her toes were both shoes were cutting into her feet.

We took them back to Clarks that night and in fairness they re measured her feet (the sales assistant hadnt done it right) and got us a new pair with no questions asked.