Children’s shoe retailers say closure of specialist shops is harming foot health | Retail industry
Shoe experts state that the number of young people with painful conditions such as bunions is increasing, and say that parents should take care of their children’s feet like their eyes and teeth.
Bunions are bony lumps on the side of the foot. People may be genetically predisposed, but ill-fitting shoes are seen as a disease. aggravating factor.
Nadia Arden-Scott, co-founder of Footwear Hub, said: “Parents are led to believe that fitting shoes is simple and can be done at home, when the truth is that DIY shoe fitting potentially causes long-term damage to their children’s feet.”
Data from property analysts Green Street shows more than 1,000 shoe stores have closed in Great Britain since 2020. With big names reducing their store numbers and independent stores closing, many parents are now ordering online for their children.
Research by Footwear Hub found that some parents had to travel up to 50 miles to use the fitting service.
The non-profit organization, formed by 40 specialist stores, launched the “adapt well, grow well” campaign to combat “the deterioration in children’s foot health”. The website offers free advice and links to services in the UK.
“We want parents to value their children’s feet as much as they value their teeth and eyes,” said Arden-Scott, who runs a children’s shoe store called ShuZu in Farnborough. “They don’t skip a dentist appointment because they think they can check their own child’s teeth at home.”
There is no scientific data showing that choosing poor shoes directly causes deformity in children, but podiatrists say that the shoes do not fit your feet properly. can cause lifelong foot problems and causes problems in the ankles, knees and back. They list falling arches, hammer and claw toes, bunions and muscle problems as potential risks.
Podiatrist and academic Jill Ferrari said: “Young people’s feet continue to grow into mid-adolescence and ill-fitting shoes can lead to toe deformities, poor foot function and reduced walking efficiency. Poor shoe choices in young children can increase the risk of tripping and falling.”
Tanya Marriott, co-founder of Footwear Hub, said: “What we are seeing is extremely worrying. Unlike other clothing, shoes directly impact the way children move, develop and grow, and the consequences of poor fit can last a lifetime.”
Shoe repairers participating in the campaign reported seeing a model in which children were wearing shoes that were too small or too tight. Marriott, who has worked as a professional cobbler for 22 years and runs SoleLution in Portishead, Somerset, said he was seeing more children with bunions.
Footwear Hub’s researchers said fitters frequently encounter children with existing foot problems, including toe deformities and structural differences, who are not receiving specialist support support.
