Is Clarks Sandals Discontinued? C. & J. Clark International Ltd is a British international shoe manufacturer and retailer. It was founded in 1825 by Cyrus Clark in Street, Somerset, England. The Company’s headquarters are there only. The Company has 1,400 branded stores and franchises worldwide and sells through third-party distribution. Clarks also operated concessions in Mothercare stores.
The brand is well-known for its Desert Boot, an ankle-height boot with a crepe rubber sole often constructed of calf suede leather typically provided by Leeds-based Charles F Stead & Co. tannery. The Desert Boot, created by Nathan Clark and first introduced in 1950, was modeled by a style of unlined suede boot that British service members had sported during the Second World War and were available in bazaars in Cairo.
The Corona period has affected everyone’s life. The pandemic also hit Clarks’ business. Clarks’ journey is around 200 years long, and after the pandemic, Clarks has to make some difficult decisions. The Company is closing up to 50 of its locations. According to a story from the Eastern Daily Press on October 7, the shoe manufacturer is closing up to 50 stores in the U.K. to survive, a move that mirrors recent closures in the U.S.
Will Clarks stop selling shoes?
Clarks has been going through a rough path like every other Company affected by the pandemic. Clarks has decided to close up its 50 stores to compensate for the expenses with the revenue.
According to Gary Champion, president of Clarks Americas, the Company could close up to 25 percent of its U.S. retail outlets by the end of 2021, bringing the total number of stateside locations from 214 to “somewhere in the mid-100s.” He said, “We overextended our brick-and-mortar portfolio.
This decision would also affect employment. People are working in stores that will be closed, then all of the employees would lose their jobs. In May, the brand announced that it would eliminate 1,000 jobs worldwide over the following 18 months, with a managing director telling Drapers that “redundancies were inevitable.”
Clarks shoes have not been discontinued, but the Company has taken specific steps to overcome the pandemic loss. Physical stores will close in high numbers, but people can still buy their favorite shoes online from any website.
Challenges faced by Clarks from the 90s to present
At the start of the 1990s, Clarks had to make some difficult choices. The Company could no longer maintain its competitiveness while manufacturing in the U.K. due to significant changes in global trade. Production was reluctantly relocated to the continent. The Company made a tiny start in Portugal, but it wasn’t enough. In the end, Clarks was forced to shut down its U.K. factory and shift the complete production line to a foreign country.
Clarks high standards were maintained despite the shift in location and are still in place today. Modern factories located overseas, explicitly constructed for Clarks, are examined by either outside auditors or the Company’s teams on-site to keep an eye on conditions and advance best working practices.
A lot of thought went into the choice to relocate abroad. But when combined with the Company’s ongoing dedication to quality, new marketing and advertising initiatives like the current “Enjoy Every Step” and “Act your shoe size, not your age” campaigns, as well as a high street rebranding. All of it helped the Company to achieve success.
What are Clarks’ plans for Discontinued Shoes Styles?
Clarks have changed over time along with the changing technologies. Everything is going well, and the Company is putting things back together. Apart from the corona period consequences, Clarks is not only the number one shoe brand in the U.K., but it is the world’s largest casual and smart shoe company. With continuous growth in North America, Western and Eastern Europe, India, and China, Clarks has become the fourth largest footwear company.
The Company says, “We’ve come a long way since Cyrus, James Clark, and the ‘Brown Petersburgh.’ But their vision and passion live on in our shoes. You could say we’re following in their footsteps.”