Clarks

Comfortable shoes that look… comfortable.
I wouldn’t ordinarily shop here, but somehow I ended up buying a bunch of expensive (but admittedly, really nice) socks here because they promised me a «lifetime» guarantee. I figured that they’d be worth the price if I could get even a few replacements out of each pair.
Turns out «lifetime guarantee», in corporate-​speak, means «whenever we want to stop honoring the guarantee.» Which they did, shortly after.
I won’t say that I’m never buying anything from these fools again, but if I do, it probably won’t happen until I’m using a (very comfortable) walker.

I got some dope boots on sale for $ 75. José was very patient and friendly throughout my time in the store. I’m very happy with the service and my boots :)

BEWARE: if you buy anything from this store, KEEP YOUR RECEIPTS!
I bought a pretty expensive paid of shoes (for me — they were around $ 200). In the first 3 weeks, part of the sole started to come off of the shoe. So I went back to the store to ask them to take a look at it. They asked me for my receipt, and I gave it to them. They swapped out the pair, but didn’t seem concerned that I had a bad experience with their brand and had to take 40 minutes off of my lunch break to get a new pair.
However, out of curiosity, I asked them if they would have returned by (by this time week old shoes) without a receipt, and they said «No. We would only give you a discount on a new pair because your current shoes are used»! What?! They were defective! If they had standard, modern customer service, I shouldn’t have to go out of pocket for anything for a defective, expensive product. They said they can’t look up old receipts on their system, and I needed the receipt or a bank statement.
REPEAT: if you buy anything from this store, KEEP YOUR RECEIPTS!
PS: in that same mall at a kiosk, I returned a broken paid of cheap $ 15 glasses without a receipt, and all they had to do was verify my purchase using my credit card. If a tiny mall kiosk store can do this, why can’t Clarks do it with $ 200 shoes?

I was all set to buy a pair of the classic desert boot. First, I stood in the middle of the store for 10 minutes holding the sample shoe and nobody asked me if I needed help. There were one young woman and one young man working there and they were helping customers and I understood I wasn’t going to get immediate attention, BUT, they each walked past me at least 4 times and said nothing. Finally they get around to me and get me a pair to try on. My wife had a coupon and before she could even finish asking if we could use it, they said without any sympathy that no, that coupon didn’t apply. After a few minutes, the woman offered the suggestion that if I went to the Clarks website and filled out a survey, I could get 10−15% off. So I tried that and the website was definitely not designed for an iphone. Multiple crashes and fields that were required that couldn’t be filled in. A nightmare that I spent 20 minutes trying to get to work. During this time, neither of the workers offered to help. I told my wife it was time to leave.
We went to Brooks Brothers and bought a pair of their desert boots made in Italy. Yes, they cost 60 bucks more, but the Clarks were made in China. The sales people asked me if I needed help as soon as I walked in the door and kept helping us (my wife went upstairs to buy a blouse) even after they were officially closed. What a difference in customer service.

Holy buckets, this place ordered a pair of shoes for me, and did not call me when they got in, but also did not answer their phone for 3 days!

It was a pleasure shopping for a pair of brown dress shoes that are comfortable at such a reasonable price, which I got on sale. I really appreciate the customer service at this store, and I thought it was amusing that the girl who helped me pick a pair of shoes is from Ireland and had a really cool accent! She was so helpful that she even picked a belt that matched my shoes, albeit I didn’t purchase it since they didn’t have my size in stock (hopefully, they would stock up on smaller sizes more). However, I’m very satisfied with my pair of Clark’s and the great customer service at this San Francisco store.

I was able to browse for a few moments before Alan asked me if I would like assistance, which I did. I had been looking at a couple of styles and had tried on an older style shoe at another store that didn’t have it in my size, so I was looking for something that could come close in terms of comfort and style. While the store didn’t quite have what I was looking for, Alan was very nice, professional, and knowledgeable about what they did have and what they could order – all without being pushy. He even helped me find a couple of shoes that were not what I would normally go for, but which I loved once they were on my feet. They were cuter AND more comfortable. I try not to buy on first sight, but I will probably go back for those shoes because of Alan’s great customer service.

I stepped into Clark’s yesterday afternoon searching for black boots. A friendly young man greeted me and politely asked if I needed his assistance. Now I already knew which style of boot I had in mind from research, and I found a very similar boot there. He quickly brought out the size I asked for. It was very big. Apparently, Clarks sized run extraordinarily large. The fellow explained that he goes at least a size smaller than his U.S. size. That was very helpful information. 8 ½ is my standard shoe size. Clarks have me in a 7 ½.
If you have feet on the wider side, Clarks are perfect. They are well made, the company is British so I figure make shoes that are ideal for extended walking, and the cost is very reasonable. We all know how popular the Clarks chukka boot are for young men. I got a pair of black ones, and am very happy with the look and size.

Not much of a selection at too great a price. I found the exact, actual clarks, that I was looking for at Macy’s $ 30 less for the normal price with an additional 20% off. I for one won’t ever bother coming back.
p. s. There appears to be something wrong with the Unilocal entries for Clarks. I actually went to the Clark’s at Stonestown but could not check into that one as Unilocal thought it was 4.5 miles away in SOMA. It thought I was at this location, which is nowhere near Stonestown. I might have tried to contact Unilocal about it, but as I won’t ever be checking back in here why bother.

After seeing suede shoes on their site, I went in to buy. Several issues:
* Sale price tagged did no match that of site (but did ring up right at least)
* I wanted to see if it goes with my dress, and since I was traveling, I asked if I can return in NC. They said I can any time if I don’t wear. I asked where stores in NC are, and they said they couldn’t tell me, then talked amongst themselves about their personal lives.
* As the shoes were being rung up, I confirmed the return policy, and the rep recalled that some of my purchase (the suede protector) cannot be returned since they can’t know if I used it. Stores like Walmart have a better return policy! Note: it was raining, so if I were to decide to wear the shoes, they would require suede protector. But if they didn’t go with my dress, I would be stuck with the bottle, while traveling. Ew.
* Sales rep jokes if I do return he hopes I’ll do it today so he can get his «multis.» While I don’t know what that means, I’m not impressed.
While some of their products are just fine, this particular stores left much to be desired.

Simple story — I bought some shoes from the outlet along with some product. The product ruined the shoes. The outlet was far, and I had lost my receipt, so I went into this Clarks and asked if they could do anything. They took my ruined shoes and ordered me some new ones. Only downside was I had to come back twice, since I only had one pair of shoes with me the first time, and didn’t want to walk home barefoot.
Great company!

I’m going out on a limb here. I love Clark’s. In my mind, I’m a stiletto-​wearing glam chick who prances around town in a miniskirt. In reality, nothing makes me happier than euro comfort shoes, and Clark’s are the best. Today I wore a pair of boots that were at least 10 years old, and still great.
A word on service — they exchanged boots I had worn briefly with no questions. Today the sales woman noticed that my socks had a hole in them when I was trying on shoes. She said they looked like Clark’s socks (they were), and told me they have a lifetime guarantee. Handed me a new pair, no questions. Awesome!
My feet are happier in a world with Clarks in them.

Let’s be honest: buying shoes in person, especially if you’re true to size and loyal to a handful of brands, is a dying trend when you have something like Zappos at your fingertips. I visited this Clarks store hoping to replace my 20 year old desert boots with a fresh pair but the ‘help’ I received bordered on self-​serve. This is a shoe store, not IKEA folks.
The sales clerk I approached was no Al Bundy. He didn’t ask me what my usual shoe size was, wasn’t willing to check the children’s stock for my size (why do desert boots for kids come in more colours than the adult version does??) and when I asked him to check other stores, or to provide a modicum of purchasing advice, he came up empty.
ME: «I guess I’ll check Zappos or something?»
SALES DOUCHE: «I guess. But they probably don’t have the same models as we do. No guarantee.»
HUH?
24 hours later I already have my Zappos order in my hands. Helllllo customer service.

If the customer service was at par with Clark’s shoes they would probably do significantly better. I had a pair of shoes that was coming apart; they had discontinued the style (for obvious reasons). When I took the shoes in, there was a lot of hesitation, back-​and-​forth b/​s, and other fabricated obstacles, before they took care of me. Left a bad taste in my mouth, and though I love clarks, it will definitely be through Zappos the next time.

Thanks for your help Clarks employees!
I decided that I really needed a new pair of shoes for work and it just happened to be Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving). I decided to go downtown to the mall anyway. I have a bad knee and I thought that Clarks would be a good place to find a decent-​looking shoe with arch support and a little heel.
The people at Clarks were super friendly without being insincere. The girl that helped me grabbed a few extra shoes in my size that she thought that I’d like and I LOVED one of the pairs of Mary Janes. They were so perfect that I almost asked her on the spot if she wanted to be friends. I’ve been wearing them every day and my feet (and knees) love me. Plus, they are so cute that a couple of my friends are planning to purchase some as well.
Plus, while I was shopping, one of the guys polished my (non-​Clarks) boots that I was wearing. Rad.

Blah.
I «discovered» Clarks Shoes two weeks ago in LA when I was trying to find an exact replacement of my favorite Sporto Lorraine Boots which are no longer available. (I accidentally spilled garlic-​oil pasta sauce in them when I fell asleep in a cab in NY, booo).
While I love my new «Witch Hazel» boots (though Sporto still has one-​up on Clarks since those were waterproof), I had to go to the SF store to return a messenger bag that the salesgirls did a good job of convincing me to buy in LA.
Brought it back, guy with black greasy hair (manager?) helping me. At the counter, I noticed that the $ 30 gloves I had also purchased were marked on sale here for $ 19.99. I’ve never had the opportunity to ask for a «price adjustment» discount at any other store, but I thought, ooh they’re on sale now? Is it within 14 days?
Long story short, I was on the dot with the 14 days, and he seemed to be processing the adjustment as he did my return. All of these gloves were hanging right next to the register, $ 30 X’ed out, clearly marked down to $ 19.99 in Sharpie marker. «Oops,» he says, «You know what, it turns out these aren’t actually on sale. See here…» he shows me some random MSRP list with the item codes listed next to it, «These are the regular priced items, and these are the ones on sale. But you know what, that code is not listed with the sale items, so it turns out we made a mistake…»
Hmmmm… okay. Most of the time (and having worked retail myself), I wouldn’t take points off a store for an honest mistake. But we had a little back and forth, and then to convince me that this was indeed legit, he went and took all the gloves down, stacked them neatly in front of the register as if he was going to re-​Sharpie mark them back up to their original price.
Now, $ 10 wasn’t enough for me to make a scene over, but I was just annoyed that clearly, this company does not honor whatever policies they list on their receipts. I almost wanted to come back the next day just so he could tell me, «Ah, (phew) you know what, it’s a day after the 14-​day price adjustment period, so…» and I could say «Yes, i know, keeping that $ 10 in company money is much more important than keeping a long-​term customer.»
He also had the nerve to say, «Oh, sales tax is cheaper in L.A., huh.» At first I was confused, and then I realized he thought I was returning the bag in order to make $.60 back in tax???
To be honest, I saw the reviews before I went in, hoping I’d have a good in-​store experience and maybe even find a wallet or other pair of shoes to take home. Unfortunately, I don’t plan on going back. Ever.

I was going to write a more positive review when I saw this store’s average, but I thought about it some more, and this place really is «A-​OK.»
I’ve been here a number of times, and I’ve found the salespeople earnest and friendly, if a bit overbearing. They will try to upsell you sometimes, but I’m pretty sure they work on commission or something, so you’ve got to expect that. If you don’t want three pairs of $ 7 socks for $ 18, just say no. (Not that big a discount, anyway, right?)
I’m mostly giving them props for being patient with me and my unfortunately wide feet. I bought a pair of sneakers here that supposedly «run wide» and seemed pretty comfortable at the store. Then as soon as I wore them outside, they started hurting like hell. Thank goodness for the 30-​day guarantee. (Don’t think this applies to every shoe they stock, though… check with them before you buy.)

NEVER GOING BACK.
TREAT CUSTOMERS LIKE CROOKS AND THOU SHALL GET NO SALES: I visited the store in San Francisco’s Westfield Mall recently. I was in a hurry but saw a pair of shoes that interested me so I decided to take a picture with my cameraphone. The guy working there yelled across the room «Sir! You can’t take pictures!» I didn’t feel too good getting reprimanded in their store. He said that I had to go to their website because I could be a competitor trying to do something underhanded — I have no idea what tho. He said it was their rule. I guess I was a customer up until I became someone allegedly trying to steal images of their shoes. Either way, the whole experience was so surprisingly unpleasant, I wasn’t sure what to do but exiting the store felt like the right thing to do.
Dear Clarks: You insult your customers and quite frankly if I were a competitor trying to emulate your shoes or some such nonsense (since they’re on your website anyway), you should probably take that as a compliment but instead, I WILL NEVER GO BACK TO YOUR STORE. NEVER. I buy a pair of shoes (like those found at Clarks — which I think could be decent products) about once every 18 – 24 months. Assuming I live to see 80, Clarks just lost about $ 2500 in potential lifetime sales from this disgusted customer. Best of luck during this recession/​depression.

Desert Boots. Wallabees. These are the «Clark’s Originals.»
Nothing else at Clark’s deserves attention. Unless you like ugly shoes.
But back to the «Originals.» While the Desert Boot wins hands-​down for looks, I prefer the Wallabee. Yes, they’re ugly. But they have a magic all their own, a magic that only reveals itself once you slip them on.
I came in specifically for the Desert Boots, but a random stroke of genius hit me while asking the sales associate for my size. It occurred to me to try the Wallabees too, just for fun, to see, if only for a laugh, how such a goofy shoe might look on my feet.
Desert Boots look sharp, even elegant. But trying on Wallabee’s is a journey from which one returns forever changed. New feelings are felt. Old priorities seem less important. An internal conversation occurs. A conversation about comfort and leisure. Style and grace. It’s about discovering your true self. A re-​birth, if you will.
It’s time to make a statement. It may not be a very stylish statement… at least not yet. But I’m gonna rock these Wallabees. Friends may be baffled. Pedestrians will roll their eyes as I pass, whispering comments to each other in hushed voices.
Let them. In six months, they’ll be rocking Wallabee’s too.

+5 stars for the iconic Desert Boot, the best casual shoe known to man.
–1 star for some of the truly atrocious styles also sold here.
–1 star for trying to sell me suede protector on checkout. I hate that shit. Like when the dudes at McDonald’s used to ask if you wanted two apple pies for a dollar. If I want it, I’ll ask for it.