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Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,331
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

binky boy......Sorry to hear this, but I am not the least bit surprised.  There have been many threads posted on this forum over the last few years concerning the same issue you are having.  I had 3 pair of Clarks fall apart exactly as yours have done.  All of my Clarks had been only lightly worn and were 1-3 years old.  One pair fell apart while I was on a long road trip, and I had to toss them in a trash can at a rest stop on I-95.  Drove the rest of the way in my socks.

 

The first time I had a pair disintegrate, I took them to my very experienced shoe repairman.  Before I could even remove them from my paper bag, he laughed and said, "Well, those must be Clarks!"  He explained that Clarks uses plastic bottoms/soles that are glued on, not sewn on.  After a year or more, the glue dries out and the shoes fall apart, especially if shoes are stored in a shoebox.  I contacted Clarks and received a free pair for my defective pair; but when pair #2 and pair #3 fell apart in similar way, I just gave up, threw them out, and have never purchased the Clarks brand again.  Clarks has fallen off in quality since being outsourced and no longer made in UK.  I have heard that several of the original Clarks craftsmen now work for Hotter shoes in UK, a good brand.  Perhaps Clarks has made improvements to their quality since my bad expereiences, but I no longer choose to take a chance on the brand, especially these days when most shoes are costing over $100.

 

I'd advise you to get the customer service phone number for ClarksUSA from their website and give them a call.  May not do a bit of good, but you'll have the satisfaction of letting them know how unhappy you are with their product performance.  Good luck!  Post back on this forum and let all of us know how you make out.

Occasional Contributor
Posts: 19
Registered: ‎04-09-2013

Thank you,I am not hard on my shoes,went to clarks site itself and was shocked to find out very unhappy people

Respected Contributor
Posts: 4,450
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

I don't understand.  If the shoes were just sitting in the box, then the money spent on them was already wasted.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 14,964
Registered: ‎05-23-2015

You might want to try " Born" shoes. I have been buying them for years and they may go out of style eventually, but they wear like iron. They average about 100.00 a pair but the quality is great.

" You are entitled to your opinion. But you are not entitled to your own facts."
Daniel Patrick Moynihan
Honored Contributor
Posts: 25,929
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

I have not ever had any of my Clarks shoes have any difficulties like the OP describes - as I said before. BUT I also do not buy my Clarks from QVC. I always buy them locally , usually at the Clarks shoe store. For this reason i am led to think that the shoes Clarks sells on QVC - which are often "exclusive" to QVC may be made of inferior materials etc. in order to meet the QVC pricepoint. Just a thought. The one time I did order a pair of Clarks from QVC was a pair of burgundy loafers and the tassel fell off the first time I wore them so I returned them. I thought I was safe because I already had those shoes in 2 colors from the shoe store and I knew what size I needed. 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 18,752
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

I have Clarks that go back 10 years and they are in great shape.

 

I question two relatively new posters who came here only to bash Clarks. 

 

I wouldn't be surprised if they were more paid hits like the others we've been getting on Chat.

 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 26,549
Registered: ‎12-17-2012

You may be right @Noel7, but I had several pair of Clarks (just like the ones in the pictures) to do the same thing and so did a friend of mine.  Some were purchased from QVC and some at the B&M stores. 

At the time of the first one I contacted Clarks and received another pair free.  Then when the others started doing the same thing Clarks said it was a "bad lot or two" and they were no longer using that company, but wouldn't compensate for any more shoes.  No longer purchase Clarks for that reason.  Afraid to spend good money on glued shoes.

Fate whispers to her, "You cannot withstand the storm." She whispers back, "I am the storm."

Honored Contributor
Posts: 13,775
Registered: ‎07-09-2011

@binky boy wrote:

These are 8 pair of Clark shoes that I have bought through the years from QVC .They should have lasted for many years. They look like they are stitched together but I am finding out they are glued together. They have come apart just setting in the box, and some I have worn very little. Even the soles are all cracked just setting in their box. How can Clarks sell these shoes, do you know how much money these shoes cost. I have gotten other shoes from QVC and never have had this problem. Clarks cost 70.00 to 100.00 and more.I will never buy Clarks again, very unhappy QVC.You can probably send them back if you had a few months to QVC, BUT WHAT IF YOU HAVE HAD LEATHER SHOES LONGER ARE THEY JUST THROUGH AWAYS, 1.00 FLIP FLOPS WOULD LAST LONGER!!!!!001.JPG003.JPG006.JPG


@binky boy

 

@I'm not particularly hard on shoes, rotate them, etc.  However, I did purchase two pair of a similar mule to one in your photo one in black, one red.    @ about a year the stitching in both pair pulled loose from the soul.  It really looked as though the stitches just disintegrated.  I wondered if it was a bad dye lot that weakened the stitching material.

"Animals are not my whole world, but they have made my world whole" ~ Roger Caras
Valued Contributor
Posts: 507
Registered: ‎03-25-2010

@Noel7 wrote:

I have Clarks that go back 10 years and they are in great shape.

 

I question two relatively new posters who came here only to bash Clarks. 

 

I wouldn't be surprised if they were more paid hits like the others we've been getting on Chat.

 


In defense of the original poster, I had 2 pair of Clark's sandals from the Q that fell apart after having been worn only briefly. The first pair was so comfortable that I ordered another pair in a different color. The first pair came apart - the upper from the sole - after about 10 wearings and the second pair came apart the FIRST time I wore it. Luckily, I was in Kohl's and went to the shoe dept. and bought a pair of shoes so I could continue shopping. This was about 3-4 years ago and there were many others that were having this same problem. Clark's recognized that the rubber sole used was defective and was replacing them if the defective ones were returned to them.

I, too, have many pairs of Clark's, mules and sandals, that have worn very well and I have puchased them from many different locations, but these from the Q were the only ones that fell apart. I am still a loyal Clark's wearer and not here to bash them, nor am I a new poster. I just know that what the OP said also happened to me in the past.

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,331
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

@DoneTryin wrote:

I don't understand.  If the shoes were just sitting in the box, then the money spent on them was already wasted.


I wear all of my shoes regularly, but I still store them in their shoe boxes.  Loose shoes do not fit on my wire closet shelves, so I store in shoeboxes which fit nicely and keep shoes dust free.