2yo refusing to wear new shoes...grr

[morningpaper]

I need some advice on tactics here.

Went to shoe shop yesterday and bought dd some new shoes - they spent about 40 minutes checking they were correct and measuring etc. etc. Now dd says they hurt and is REFUSING to wear them with full-on tantrums etc. THEY COST 27 QUID!!!

She wore them home from the shop so I can't return them. She was complaining that they hurt on the way back from the shop.

I'm sure they are just tight because they are new?

I'm SO angry - mainly because I'd love to buy MYSELF a new pair of shoes for 27 quid I admit.

WHAT CAN I DO?!

[starlover]

Where did you buy them from?
I worked in clarks (am on mat. leave), and if someone brought a pair of shoes back that the child was really insistent hurt then we would quite often exchange them, even if they had been worn outside.
I can't guarantee that they would at your store... but it might be worth a try.

As you say though, it is possibly just because they are new and feel a bit stiff/tight. I am sure you know how contrary 2 year olds can be! but unfortunately I guess she is a bit too young to reason with.
Have you checked her feet after she wears them to see if there are any red marks? If so then I would definitely take them back to the shop because they may be rubbing

[Angeliz]

Take them back.
Even if they have been worn outside, insist they're hurting her feet. (But you must look suitably convinced and outraged). After all if they measured her then they would have to change them i would imagine.

Good luck+

[paolosgirl]

Agree with Angel - our local Clarks (sorry, starlover) is managed by this harridan who will fight tooth and nail not to have shoes returned. She is really quite unpleasant. If you do take them back, labour the point about how they can't have been fitted properly, and how disappointed and upset you are after spending a lot of money. I used to work in a shoe shop many moons ago - new shoes shouldn't have to stretch before they get comfy. Good luck.

[Blu]

Morningpaper, DS has orthotic shoes so we go through quite a bit of 'acclimatisation trauma' with each new pair. I sometimes try putting them on immediately before a very exciting absorbing activity so that the new shoes get forgotten until they have worn in a bit - but we are told that if there is a consistent red patch then they probably are genuinely uncomfortable.
If not I have been known to resort to bribery aka star chart.
Would any of this help?
Flex the leather back and forth to soften it up?

[morningpaper]

I've stuff them with newspaper to see if that helps.

She actually LOVES the shoes and is gutted that they 'hurt'.

My local Clark's is also a fight-tooth-and-nail not to have them returned kind of place. I tried before with a pair which had broken FGS! I will give it a try though.

27 QUID !!!!!!!!!!!!!

[paolosgirl]

Good luck - stand your ground. If they are rubbing and causing a red mark, then they haven't fitted them properly. You could always threaten head office, trading standards etc etc, but hopefully it won't come to that.

[starlover]

I am begining to think that I worked in a pretty nice clarks shop now!
If they really haven't been fitted properly (and are making marks on her feet) then you have every right to take them back!
If the shop refuses then get on to clarks head office to complain.
Or, bring them to the Crawley branch in west sussex..

[Sponge]

If she loves them then chances are they really are uncomfortable. Have you tried them with various socks, made sure there are no rucks etc?
If she still says they hurt I would definitely take them back. It is their job to make sure they fit them properly - they are the experts in this not you - and they should be able to spot any potential tight, loose or rubbing bits - that's why they ask you to walk around a bit in them.

[Mirage]

The 3 year old my sister looks after did this too.She complained that every pair made her feet hurt,regardless of size/width ect.

Her mum bought the shoes,but the little girl has now hidden them & is refdusing to say where they are.

She claims that 'a bear ate them'.

[secur]

Message withdrawn

[starlover]

maybe a bear really did eat them

[SofiaAmes]

Sorry, I think that the idea of a 2 year old having to stretch shoes for them to become comfortable is ridiculous. If the shoes are so tight that they stretch with wearing then they are too tight to begin with. (I also feel the same way about adult shoes too) Go back to the store and complain loudly that they were fitted badly and contact the parent company if they refuse to take them back.

[starlover]

when i said they might need wearing a bit I was in no way suggesting that they needed stretching!
simply that the new leather is likely to feel quite stiff compared to her old shoes...
that doesn't mean there is anything wrong with the fit of the shoe.
It could also be the style..for example, some children don't like wearing a mary-jane style because the bar feels funny over the top of the foot. It isn't necessarily a bad fit, just personal preference.
As I said before, the best way to tell if they are actually hurting her is to get her to wear them for half an hour or so and then check the feet for marks. If anywhere looks redder than normal then the shoe is rubbing.

[milge]

Go to startrite, they fit shoes properly, imho. I took ds into our local clarks to get fitted,( wearing a pair of 3 month old clarks shoes, size 7H) and was told - "he's coming up to a 6.5G" FFS!
I'd take them back, as not being fit for their purpose. I left and went directly to a startrite shoe shop, and haven't been back to clarks since ( despite the 10% discount for TAMBA members), which really makes a difference on £27 X2 every 6 weeks. Don#t be fobbed off - £27 is a lot of money for ill fitting, unsuitable footwear.

[morningpaper]

Well I went this morning and of course DD managed to show the lady how nicely she could walk in them and didn't complain at all FFS. They said that they were fitting fine and I should just try them for a few days. I said she was definitely uncomfortable in them and she is not normally one to complain, but they said that they couldn't see anything wrong with them so I would have to try them for a few days and return if she was still complaining.

And I had to wait for 25 minutes to be told this, grr.

[morningpaper]

This is DEFINITELY the last time I buy dd Clark's shoes.

[Blossomhill]

Morningpaper I would of insisted on trying a different style as sometimes certain styles don't suit some children's feet. I have had so may problems with Clarkes but keep going back. Startrite ar very good but quite pricey!

[morningpaper]

Well dd has been wearing her Clark's shoes for two months now and it is only recently that I put 2+2 together and realised that this is why she seems to be developing problems walking.

After she got her Clark's shoes muddy last week, I put her in an old pair of shoes and all her walking/leg problems DISAPPEARED instantly. Since then she has been walking for MILES with no complaints or problems. It's a miraculous change.

I'm SO angry with Clark's for insisting that I persisted with the shoes, even though I was sure they were uncomfortable. I am never shopping there again!

[WestCountryLass]

Another Mum who thinks Clarks are a pile of crap. The year before last I went there for sandals for DS, they did not have an E fitting fo gave me a F telling me it would be OK because of he velcro fastening and they rubbed his little feet raw, he had blisters on every part of his foot where there were straps and could not wear shoes at all for 2 weeks. I then went back and parted with more cash on shoes that did not fit, he is an E but they don't make many shoes in his size in an E so they have sold me Fs which are obviously too wide. Why don't they just say if there shoes won't fit so I can buy ones that do elsewhere?????

[stripey]

When I buy new shoes I try to get them measured in 2 or 3 places and they always come up with different sizes. In John Lewis they said ds was an E fitting even though he had always been an F yet in another shop he was a G??