£££ for kids shoes? (been done I know, but come and rant with me)

[trixie123]

Want to get autumn/winter shoes for DS (3) and DD (17m and very much on her feet). They've spent all summer in doodles and croc type things so maybe I've forgotten but bloody hell! Nearly £40 for DS if we want boot style ones from Clarks / Jones etc and not far off for DD. I want them in good quality sturdy shoes, not flimsy plimsolls but that's outrageous, especially for DD whose feet are growing very quickly. AIBU to think that if Clarks et al really care about kids feet as they suggest they do, they might make their prices a little more reasonable? I don't spend that much on my shoes, even work ones. Can anyone recommend a make that isn't supermarket rubbish but isn't going to break the bank?

Have you tried Brantanos? They have clarks shoes at reduced prices.

Or a Clarks outlet shop?

I would have been pleased if I could have got my dd shoes at only £40. At that age my dd's feet were so narrow (c fitting) Clarks didn't fit. Had to go to a 'posh' shop selling italian shoes at £58 a pop. Was so glad when I found Next shoes are on the narrow side and could get ones from there from about the age of 21/2.

Ugh don't frighten me, DS is 8 months and the thought of the expense of shoes in a few months worries me... Doesn't help that I'm pretty sure we'll have to go to Clarks/Start Rite as he's inherited my wide pasty feet and weird little toes, poor sod.

Not much comfort, but wait til you've got school shoes to add into the mix. At any one time we have for DD school shoes, trainers and 'other' shoes which tend to be cheaper pumps for parties etc. For DS we have trainers for nursery and then other shoes too. In winter there are wellies and/or boots to add into this. I just about died when trying to get boots for DD last winter as they were £45 plus or £65 plus from the local independent.

I have started buying in advance in the sales in the appropriate width and then waiting until their feet reach the right size.

The prices are just huge for what you get although I was actually quite pleased to get my DS and DD's shoes in Clarks for £70 for the two.

I had been shopping in Brighton and DD saw a pair in a shop window. They were bog standard black leather school shoes at a pretty price of £72. They were put back on the shelf sharpish!

YANBU.

I have given up with clarks etc as I seem to be better at checking the fit than their staff. Taking Ds to next for some this afternoon

It's a pain. Ds1 and ds2 are both E width fittings and I've not yet found a pair of supermarket/Brantano/non-Clarks shoes which are not like boats on them. £36 a couple of weeks ago for a pair of shoes for a 2 year old .

I don't think that's a bad price though for well fitting leather shoes. Both my dcs have narrow fitting so can't buy from supermarkets or next type shops. Their feet don't grow that fast and at Clarks they fit with plenty of growing room. I only buy two pairs a year generally for each dc.

Do you have a Clarks outlet near you? I go there for my two Dss school shoes and they are around £10 cheaper per pair.

AIBU to think that if Clarks et al really care about kids feet as they suggest they do, they might make their prices a little more reasonable?

They're not a charity, they sell shoes to make money. I would imagine that they look at how much the shoes cost to make, and add on a percentage for advertising, distribution, development, and a specific profit margin, then sell them for that amount.

If they were making obscene profits per shoe, then their share price and annual profits would reflect it, which I doubt it does unlike Apple.

Brantanos is where you need to go.

YANBU we have to buy Clarks because off the shelf don't fit my dd (narrow heels). We usually have to buy two to three pairs of school shoes a year, plus trainers because they wear out - not necessarily because she's grown out of them - the soles start getting holes in. At £30+ a pair I think it's outrageous and think they could probably still make a good profit selling them a bit cheaper. They do seem to have a bit of a monopoly.

I bought Clarks shoes for both of my DCs (then aged 2 and 4) last September. They lasted the full school year and looked almost as good by July as they did when I bought them. For my DS, they were his only shoes (no trainers or sandals even), so that's pretty good going. Of course they're not cheap, but I'm borderline neurotic very keen that they always wear good shoes. To balance it out, most of their clothes are second hand!

Another yes to a Clarks outlet shop. I go twice a year for winter and summer shoes plus school shoes for my two and I must save £120. The only drawbacks are not much choice in styles and a bit of a scrum to be fitted.

Clarks shoes are shite quality now anyway. I bought dc's school shoes from there last year and they lasted a couple of months max.

I also bought my dc startrite and they literally lasted 2 weeks-huge scuffs and chunks of leather out of them-if I had kept the receipt would have bloody took them back!

Lelli kelli despite the snobbish attitude towards them on mn are excellent shoes-lasted dd a whole year and still looked ok. I have bought her a pair of the shoes and the boots for winter.

I think one of the reasons that Clarks are so expensive is the range of sizes and fittings they make, if they only made one width and no half sizes they'd probably be able to knock them out for a lot less.

At £30+ a pair I think it's outrageous and think they could probably still make a good profit selling them a bit cheaper.

Believe me, if they were making outrageous profits on them, some other company would want a piece of that action.

Just googled Clarks shoes profits.

Record profits of £100million in 2011 - highest since establishment in 1825

I have just had to buy a pair of school shoes, a pair of plimsolls, a pair of trainers for school, "home" shoes, "home" trainers, and a pair of wellies, as my DS has managed to sprout his feet 1.5 sizes over the summer since I bought him sandals and crocs in July!

Thank heavens for Clarks outlet and Adidas outlet, they worked out £20 a pair for trainers and home shoes, £8 for the plimsolls from Clarks, and the wellies I got in good old sainsburys :) but the school shoes I got in an independent shoe shop.

Expensive business having kids but I want him to have sturdy shoes.

Fwiw I never get him measured in Clarks, I go to an independent shop where I feel more confident that they measure him properly! plus the 50-60yr old ladies fuss over him loads so he loves it

Well I have always been of the "precious feet" persuasion and gone for Start Rite every time at £40+. Normally they last the full year, very well made etc.

So far this term (10 days) DS has managed to wear his new shoes on a canoeing trip and now LOSE one

really he should have £3 trainers from Asda

Is there no outlet stores near you? We have one close by which sells the likes of Crocs, DM's, Clarks etc for a cheaper price.

@mum4041

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-somerset-13601573

"The report showed a boost in overseas sales helped offset poor UK sales."

Incidentally, this link www.fasttrack.co.uk/fasttrack/leagues/dbDetails.asp?siteID=4&compID=716&yr=2010 shows they made a profit of £125M in 2010, so not sure why the report says £100M in 2011 was record profits.