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I have always bought Clarks shoes and 58 years after national service, I still stick to the "wear them - polish them" philosophy. I have quite a few pairs and wear them infrequently. Recently however, the sole and heel has started coming away from a virtually unworn pair and the welt just peeled away altogether.
They offered me £10 which I refused...
The manager of a Clarks shoe shop told me that they had had problems with some of the materials on that type of shoe and after speaking to Customer services, they offered me £10 which I refused.
I returned the shoes to the Clarks shoe shop as requested and following complaints to the Chief Executive, they reluctantly increased the offer to £30.
I am disinclined to accept this latest offer either as it would cost me at least £60 to get a new pair and that is virtually what they were.
They did initially have a moan about the age of the shoes, but they are only a few years old and as it happens totally unworn. I have much older, cheaper, leather shoes which are still perfect condition. After all this fiasco I doubt seriously if I will ever wear Clarks shoes again.
I have since asked them to keep the shoes so that they can be returned to me, but I doubt if they will, in which case I will take this to Trading Standards or the small claims court. I am as impressed with Clarks customer service as I am with the shoes.
Has anyone else had a similar experience Clarks shoes?
By: Bouncer
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Clarks has definitely gone downhill. A few years ago, I bought my daughter Clarks school shoes thinking they would last. In two months the soles were completely peeling/worn out. I think it had something to do with the stupid miniature toy stored in the sole which meant the sole was hollow and thin.
Took the shoes back which they exchanged. The SAME thing happened. Clarks denied other people had the same problem (I think they were being economical with the truth). They reluctantly allowed me to exchanged, and I chose a different style. These lasted slightly longer but still wore out incredibly quickly. I now refuse to buy Clarks school shoes - the Asda (George) ones lasted at least 6 months before they looked worn out!
05/09/13 Mona Lisa
Took the shoes back which they exchanged. The SAME thing happened. Clarks denied other people had the same problem (I think they were being economical with the truth). They reluctantly allowed me to exchanged, and I chose a different style. These lasted slightly longer but still wore out incredibly quickly. I now refuse to buy Clarks school shoes - the Asda (George) ones lasted at least 6 months before they looked worn out!
5
dawn, your attempt at undermining critical posts of Clarks is not subtle enough. Your post is designed to show that people are being unreasonable, as if they are all complaining about shoes 'several years old' and expect to get refunds or compensation when they fail e.g. the soles disintegrate.
The time span that the vast majority of posts are complaining about in relation to Clarks ranges from days to weeks to months. If only Clarks shoes had a lifespan of 6 years, then I doubt that there would be many, if any, complaints. This is not the case. Clarks shoes are so crap that many customers are lucky to get 6 weeks out of them, and often far less.
I hope Clarks are paying you well dawn, but please don't assume we are all stupid. As I've stated in earlier posts
Clarks shoes=crap. It's as simple as that.
05/09/13 miserablemoaninggit
The time span that the vast majority of posts are complaining about in relation to Clarks ranges from days to weeks to months. If only Clarks shoes had a lifespan of 6 years, then I doubt that there would be many, if any, complaints. This is not the case. Clarks shoes are so crap that many customers are lucky to get 6 weeks out of them, and often far less.
I hope Clarks are paying you well dawn, but please don't assume we are all stupid. As I've stated in earlier posts
Clarks shoes=crap. It's as simple as that.
6
I took a pair of Clarks shoes, several years old but barely worn back and got ten pounds off a new pair offer. I thought this was a one off and wasn't too bothered. However last week I got out another pair, several years old but as new and they literally fell apart in my hands- the sole parted company with the upper and then the sole fell into several pieces. I went and looked at the many shoes in my wardrobe and found several pairs all splitting and absolutely useless. They all have the soft 'springer' type sole. To replace these it will cost me at least £200 -£300 and I know If I get anything back, it will not come anywhere near that. I will not be replacing them with this type of sole and not with Clarks. I thought if you looked after shoes they lasted for many years - now I know the life of these soles is 6 years max (according to Clarks) I know they are not for me.
04/09/13 dawn
-3
My husband in his 70s has a pair of Clarks shoes he wore for best occasions. The top has separated from the sole, so that now there's a long slit along the inner side of each shoe, they are totally useless and cannot be repaired. All his other shoes have lasted many years and he takes great care of them. I am sure most people have a best pair of shoes they only wear on best occasions. However the Clarks shop manager told us it was due to hydrolysis as he had not worn them enough! Today she offered us a £10 voucher towards a new pair. We rejected that. No more Clarks shoes for us!!
27/08/13 K M
2
I have the same problem with the soles parting company with the shoe at the stitching. This has happened on three pairs so far. Clarkes shoes are going down hill rapidly.
18/08/13 Evadsmoor
2
I buy all my shoes in Spain. There they are all made from real leather. I bought a pair in Valencia for €70. Best shoes I have ever had.
10/08/13 Buy Your Shoes In Spain
-1
Wore some nice-looking Clarks sandals for only the second time during recent fine weather. Soles quickly disintegrated and looked just like soft polystyrene. Wrote to complain and was told that some artificial material does degrade over time - £10 voucher off my next purchase. Surely Clarks should use better material for soles. I have other shoes in my wardrobe that have lasted for many years.
03/08/13 Jehu
4
LP74, in my case it was a pair of light stone coloured bar shoes; obviously summer shoes. The soles crumbled at the start of their second or third summer, in the shop I was told that I should have been wearing them all year round! They had only been unworn for a few months, not years.
Really, shouldn't it be up to us how often we wear our shoes?
If the soles are going to fall apart if they aren't worn (out of season) for a few months shouldn't we be warned when we buy them?
Oh, but then we wouldn't buy them, would we!
03/08/13 grumpyoldwoman
Really, shouldn't it be up to us how often we wear our shoes?
If the soles are going to fall apart if they aren't worn (out of season) for a few months shouldn't we be warned when we buy them?
Oh, but then we wouldn't buy them, would we!
2
I tell you what happened - because shoes are now made in Bangladesh instead of Europe in order to reduce cost! Greedy corporates.
02/08/13 Nick
8
Yes, LP74, if only the problem with Clarks shoes was as you say - for those over 5/6 years old. In my case, the problems occurred when they weren't even a month old.
For the vast majority of posts on this particular gripe, the shoes are far from 5/6 years old.
Also, you fail to reflect upon the fact that many of the posts comment on the decline in quality of Clarks shoes compared to years ago. People take notice!
So, don't buy Clarks shoes, get your use out of a preferably British brand and keep complaining if you made the mistake of buying Clarks shoes. Shoes aren't for life, but as with many things there is an expectation of a basic standard of quality relative to the price paid, and Clarks is very much failing to meet this standard.
02/08/13 miserablemoaninggit
For the vast majority of posts on this particular gripe, the shoes are far from 5/6 years old.
Also, you fail to reflect upon the fact that many of the posts comment on the decline in quality of Clarks shoes compared to years ago. People take notice!
So, don't buy Clarks shoes, get your use out of a preferably British brand and keep complaining if you made the mistake of buying Clarks shoes. Shoes aren't for life, but as with many things there is an expectation of a basic standard of quality relative to the price paid, and Clarks is very much failing to meet this standard.
6
There is a chemical process called hydrolysis that causes molded polyurethane to crumble by breaking the bonds that hold its molecules together. This is what is happening to your shoes.
It tends to happen in shoes over 5/6 years old. The way people tend to store the shoes can contribute to the problem. I always find it strange that people will buy shoes, wear them once and then put them back into the box and store them for years before getting them back out again.
I find it even stranger that people expect to get the full amount back 6 years later, without a receipt or anything.
I work for a shoe company and we get people bringing shoes in claiming they bought them only a few months ago, but when we get the catalogue out and show them that the style hasn't been in-store for 5+ years, they soon backtrack.
Buy your shoes, wear them, get your use out of them and stop the complaining. Shoes aren't for life, in the same way that most things aren't these days!
02/08/13 LP74
It tends to happen in shoes over 5/6 years old. The way people tend to store the shoes can contribute to the problem. I always find it strange that people will buy shoes, wear them once and then put them back into the box and store them for years before getting them back out again.
I find it even stranger that people expect to get the full amount back 6 years later, without a receipt or anything.
I work for a shoe company and we get people bringing shoes in claiming they bought them only a few months ago, but when we get the catalogue out and show them that the style hasn't been in-store for 5+ years, they soon backtrack.
Buy your shoes, wear them, get your use out of them and stop the complaining. Shoes aren't for life, in the same way that most things aren't these days!
-13
About 5 months ago the heels on my top-of-the-range Clarkes shoes fell apart whilst I was walking to a meeting on an overseas business trip. They were a few years old but I don't wear them very often - just for grip on icy pavements. This was very inconvenient.
My wife just got out a pair of summer shoes she hasn't worn for ages. The soles and heels disintegrated in the first 400 metres.
Both pairs with their leather uppers looked in perfect condition and were hardly worn. We won't be buying any more.
14/07/13 Jervish
My wife just got out a pair of summer shoes she hasn't worn for ages. The soles and heels disintegrated in the first 400 metres.
Both pairs with their leather uppers looked in perfect condition and were hardly worn. We won't be buying any more.
2
I have worn Clarks shoes for several years now, but have noticed the newer pairs do not wear as well as they used to do. I used to get about 2 years wear out of a pair, the most recent ones have only been used since Christmas and recently split at the side, below the stitching. they are also showing a lot more wear than previous pairs.
25/06/13 Graham
3
Clarks=Trash, as simple as that. If you want to purchase shoes under the illusion that you are purchasing British quality, then go to Clarks. It is all illusion. A hangover from times past when they actually gave a damn about quality.
Now, Clarks have embraced the trashy, international business model of sub-contracting the production of its products with the aim of maximum profits based upon minimal quality.
Boycott Clarks! Spread the word! They are selling sub-standard crap!
24/06/13 miserablemoaninggit
Now, Clarks have embraced the trashy, international business model of sub-contracting the production of its products with the aim of maximum profits based upon minimal quality.
Boycott Clarks! Spread the word! They are selling sub-standard crap!
13
Chris Wesson
I complained to Clarks and they asked me to send them back.
Nothing happened and I phoned them after two weeks.
Lost the shoes and can I provide proof of delivery.
Did that.
Loads of phone calls. Finally a letter arrived. £10.00 voucher an aclaim that the shoes were at least 6 years old and not their problem.
Total run around. I feel that they have a policy of messing people about till they go away.