Stride Rite Shoes

My daughter is just days away from taking her first steps so we thought it would be best to get her into some shoes right away. I knew from my Mom friends that Stride Rite shoes worked really well with their children while they were learning to take their first steps so I thought we’d give Stride Rites a visit to see what they had for our daughter.
We were immediately helped by Oscar who went right into measuring her feet to find her correct size. He showed us the section that we should be looking at for her and gave us a brief understanding of why the construction of their shoes help infant walking abilities rather than hinder. We were sold.
We found a few that we thought were cute and they both looked adorable on her. Oddly enough, she loves her baby UGGS but she’s been a little weary of shoes lately. We have a few pairs at home that were given to her as gifts but she wouldn’t even let me put them on her. She didn’t seem to mind when we slipped on both of the Stride Rite shoes though. In the end, we ended up choosing both of the two he brought out. One was more of a shoe and the other was a sandal so it was a no brainer. ;)
Sandal:
Shoe:
We’ll definitely be buying more shoes for her in the future. She wore one of them out of store and didn’t try to take them off at all so they seem to have gone over well with her. yay!

Carmen was really impressive in her customer service! I’ve been to many Stride Rites and the associated are always helpful. Carmen was heads above: she looked at my son’s battered shoes for wear, recommended some «Made 2 Play» shoes which have an extra cover on the toes (for those kids who drag the top) and which are machine washable. Her attitude was friendly, extremely helpful and she gave me space when I was debating between which ones to get.

We got wonderful service from Oscar. He was attentive and proactive. He helped us when buying shoes for our boys. He went to get the shoes our boys had picked and when one of the boy’s size was out he brought us a couple of other options that he thought he might like. He actually put the shoes on the boys and made sure they fit properly. Very impressed.

It was a ZOO there today before back to school and I anticipated the worst when I walked in but Oscar was juggling customers like a pro and quickly helped us with what we needed. Somebody give that guy a raise! Bonus experience of the lovely play area and nursing lounge right outside! Way to go UTC!

5 stars for being geniuses and positioning themselves right next to the Dolphin fountain and the play area. mama fell for it and bought 2 pairs of shoes while we’re on vacation. damn you Stride Rite and your Marketing Prowess! anyway, 60% off the day we came helped too. our kids love their shoes and they last long.

My wife and I took our son to get some new shoes at Stride Rite. We were helped by Carman. Who was very helpful and knowledgeable about the products. She measured our sons feet. She determined that he has wide feet and helped us pick the right shoe to fit him the best.

I have had OUTSTANDING service at this Stride Rite. I have only been twice in the past 4 months but each time I was floored at how amazing an experience I had. The associate that helped me both times was Oscar. I can’t imagine buying shoes for my kid (s) – one on the way) anywhere else.
I think any of the past Unilocal that reflected poor service are probably from people who no longer work there. At very least ask for Oscar. He has a great attitude and is SO knowledgeable and helpful.

The shoes there are fabulous. After buying shoes for my son at target, walmart and pay for less and having them rip apart within a week I decided to shell out the big bucks and purchase a pair of $ 50 shoes. Not only did my son absolutely love his captain amercia shoes and thinks he can run faster in them, they lasted until he finally grew out of them. Well worth every single penny… so much so that I purchased another pair… spiderman!
They do get really busy during the weekend though so go on a weekday if possible.

Stride-​Rite is a small child-​friendly store in UTC near Macy’s. My daughter & I like their selection of shoes for toddler girls. Stride-​Rite has Saucony brand athletic shoes which fit my little granddaughter, and help to prevent slipping and falls. Many cheaper shoes from department stores don’t have good tread on the bottom of the shoe.
Stride-​Rite has a good sale twice a year where you buy 1 shoe and get half off the second pair. I believe one sale happens around August… just ask. Staff is always very friendly and helpful. They are patient with the kids and good with adults as well.
Stride-​Rite has some shoes with little round dots on the bottom instead of tread for the younger walkers… but we never liked those because they seem to cause slipping. Try to choose the shoes with more tread on the bottom (see my 2 photos).
We like the Saucony brand, but Stride-​Rite brand is good too, as long as it has tread on the bottom, and not just little dots.
We also like the socks at Stride-​Rite, as they fit well and last in the wash.
There is now a mini playground in the UTC mall very close to Stride-​Rite, so promise your toddler or pre-​schooler if she or he is good in the shoe store, they can play afterwards. (-: There is also a Wetzel’s pretzels near the Stride-​Rite!
Park near the Red Robin restaurant or near Macy’s in the UTC mall if you are going to Stride-​Rite.

Went there on a busy Sunday to take advantage of the sale with my 12 month old and 3 year old. We were helped right away and the sales lady spent a lot of time with us, she watched both my children walk around to make sure the shoes fit right. She was very busy and managed to spend enough time with us to measure both my kids feet CORRECTLY and help me fit my crazy 3 year old who didn’t want to cooperate. I have come to this store for shoes since my 3 year old first started walking at 9 months old and never had a problem. I love this store and will continue to buy my kids shoes there. Thank you Stride Rite!!!

Dropped by UTC Stride Rite to buy a pair of shoe for my daughter while I was shopping. She was not with me so I guessed the size. When I got home and had her try the shoe, it was too big. When I went to the store to return the shoe I was unpleasantly surprised when I was told that I could not return but could only exchange a shoe that I bought just 3 hours ago because the associate thought it was used. She had not used it so I asked the associate how it was possible that we could have used it when we literally bought it hours ago. The sales person said we could have worn it around the mall before coming in to return it! Ask if there is a manager who can take a look at the shoe and inform me how it is that this brand new shoe is used and was told that she was indeed the manager. The actually amount of money involve was not a big deal, but the dishonesty of the whole situation is offensive! I will not be shopping at this store again and don’t know if this is an isolated incident or this is how this stride rite location really executes it return policy. Yuck!

I used to shop at the Stride Rite store in Temeucla when I lived there and had great service, no issues. But, when I moved back to San Diego, I have yet to have a very good experience at the Stride Rite in UTC. Of course the shoe quality is pretty good but that is the only good thing I can say about this place.
A couple of years ago, my son needed some new tennies so I brought him here. He chose the shoes he wanted, they sized him, we purchased them and we were on our way. A couple days later, I realized they shoes were slipping up and down in the heel area. I tried to tighten the shoes (they were velcro) and they kept popping open. I decided to bring them back because they had not fitted him properly. I didn’t have the receipt because I had already entered in my checkbook. They wouldn’t even exchange the shoes for something a little different for the same or higher price. I explained that this was their issue because the fitted him improperly and they refused to budge. While I was in their store, I called Nordstrom in the same mall. I explained my situation to them (I even told them I bought them at Stride Rite) and they told me to come in and they would take care of me. WOW, can yoiu believe that!!! So, I decided to make Nordstrom my go-​to place for kids shoes.
About a month ago, I decided to give Stride Rite another chance because they were having a BOGO sale. Big mistake! Less than a month later, the shoes started falling apart (both pairs). I called them about this last week and told them I didn’t have a receipt and they said no problem, they would take care of it. Due to some financial issues and not having gas, I couldn’t make it till yesterday. I was greeted by two women who had a major attitude about exchanging them and kept arguing with me about it. For whatever reason, they decided to measure my son’s feet and told me that the shoes were getting worn because he was mis-​sized and his shoes were too big. So, I had the argument (yet again!) that this was their mistake and should make it right. They are supposed to be the experts in sizing children, right? They eventually agreed to exchange the shoes for the same size he already had (which is what I was expecting anyway) but not without argument. They both had to make sure they had the last word and said «well just so you know, the same thing will happen with these shoes because they are too big» to which I replied «well, you won’t have to worry about us exchanging them with you again because from now on I will ONLY be shopping at Nordstrom for my son’s shoes!».

I have a new walker and wanted to get him the right pair of shoes. I could have gone to Target and found a pair that fit but I wanted to get a pair that would be best for his developing feet. I went to stride rite thinking they would be able to answer all my questions and find the most suitable pair. The sales woman seemed to have better things to do, she acted put out when I asked her measure my son’s feet (which she measured incorrectly) and didn’t seem to know anymore about the product then what was written on the shelves. When I asked specifics i was given generic answers. I like the product so next time I’ll save on gas and just order online…

I came here last year and the service was really great, the girl working was friendly and very helpful. I was expecting my experience to be about the same, not even close…
The girl who «helped» us, and I use that term loosely, was too interested in chatting with her co-​worker. She was acted put out when I asked to have my son sized. She wasn’t knowledgeable about the products, and when I asked about a specific shoe I was looking for she crabbily replied «this is all there is.» No mention of a website where I could perhaps order what I was looking for. She then walked off and stood behind the counter. I probably should have left, but my little guy needed a new pair of sneakers, and he had already found the ones he wanted. So I had to wait for her to acknowledge me and come back so I could ask for a pair to try on. She came back with the box and set it down and left. I’ve been shopping at Stride Rite stores since my son was a newborn and never once has this happened, they always remove the stuffing and put the shoe on, check the fit, ect. She apparently did not agree with my decision to buy a shoe size that was one size up, rather than a half a size up, even after I explained that he had shoes in that particular size already and that he wanted a bigger size because he doesn’t like the snug fit on his feet, it’s a sensory issue with him. She just said, «well, it’s your choice.» If I wanted to be around passive-​aggressive jerks I would have stayed at work instead of taking off early to get my 5 year-​old some shoes. Jeez, I deal with parolees all day, at least they have an excuse for their bitterness… As soon as she handed me the bag she took off to the backroom to resume her chat with her co-​worker, no thank you, have a nice day, ect.
Guess I’ll just stick to the shoe department at Nordstroms, I won’t be back to this store again…
0 stars for the LOUSY service, but I give the store a 2 because they do have a good selection of shoes, and I do like the quality of the shoes, but since they also carry them at Nordstroms, I’ll just buy them there…