to expect a shoe shop to measure my kids' feet properly?

[gemmiegoatlegs]

I took my ds to get his feet measured at clark's. His last pair of shoes were a size 9 bought in january. When i took him this week , the spotty youth salesman measured his feet as size 8. i checked this myself and ds is defo a size 8.

so that means last time he had shoes in jan, his feet were measured as afull size bigger. And the time before that, last september, he had also measured a size 8 and a half..

so in the last 7 months, either his feet have shrunk two sizes or he has been incorrectly measured on two seperate occassions.

I don't mean to be cynical, but is it possible the shoe people would measure kids feet wrongly on purpose just to make a sale?

I hate clarks measurements, they never read my dd the same twice.

thishappehned to jme too. Took DS back aftet 3 months and he was 8. Last tijeme they old me that his was a 8.5. Bloodsy naisl.

Where they both clarks? I only ask because Startrite measure bigger which may expain the difference in sizing.

it was clarks. i won't be going there again...

...my ds moaned for weeks that his feet hurt him when he got that last pair. I was telling him they just needed wearing in, but really I suspected a ruse as we were in a "Don't want to walk to school" phase! How guilty am I now?!

yes clAREKS

The main shoe shop near me won't measure anyones feet for them. They have the thingy that you put your feet on but you have to do it yourself.
If you buy the wrong size shoes which cripple you or your kids then you can't take back the shoes as its your fault, not theirs.

Ex Clarks manager here

The size you are told when measured is just a guide or starting point if you like. Because of the differing styles of shoes, different widths and sizes are sometimes chosen to get a good fit.

As part of Clarks fitting training, which btw is very thourgh, they should always always say when they are meauring that it is a guide. Every member of staff should say that. They should also talk through each step of the fitting with you and show you what they are doing.
Thats what the mystery shoppers have to check when they are being assesed.

Obviously in this circumstance your ds was fitted with the wrong size. You would have been fine to take them back and get them re-checked and swapped for the right size or refunded.

If you do ever go back, make sure that the assistant goes through all the checks with you and if they dont, either ask for someone else to do it or check them or dont buy them.
I've done this loads with my dd.

I thought Clark's refunded you within 3 months if it turned out they had checked & fitted incorrectly.

This happens to us all the time. Sometimes they justify it by saying that a larger shoe gives a better fit or that each manufacturer shoes come up in different sizes (you'd think that Clarks and Startrites could manage to make the same size shoes given the hoo-har about having them fitted before you're allowed to buy them). I never tell shop staff what size the DCs feet are before they're measured.

Slight x-post with Nbg there. I bow to your knowledge

Me too

lol

The thing is as a customer you dont know all this. Your not told.
But the assistants do go through a hell of alot of training to be a fitter and if they dont get it right in the training, they dont become one. They dont train all staff to do it either.

I totally understand why people get annoyed though.

Well I complained s when I aslht went int and they gave s me some free shoo shines. Big blodsy deal - possr DS walsking areound in shoeas that don't fit