CLARKS

Clarks started in 1825 in a small English village called Street, in Somerset, and the story behind it is genuinely charming. Cyrus Clark ran a business making sheepskin rugs, and his younger brother James, while working with him, noticed all the leftover leather scraps piling up. Instead of throwing them out, James started stitching them into simple slippers. Those slippers, called the Brown Petersburg, became so popular that by 1842 the brothers were selling around 1,000 pairs a month. Two hundred years later, Clarks is still run from that same town in Somerset, and much of the company is still owned by the Clark family.

The Shoe That Made Clarks Famous

In 1949, a family member named Nathan Clark was serving in the army and spotted soldiers in Cairo wearing simple suede boots with a crepe rubber sole. He brought the idea home, and the result was the Desert Boot, one of the most recognizable shoe styles ever made. It's been worn by everyone from 1960s Mods to hip-hop artists in New York decades later, and it's still one of Clarks' best-known shoes today.

Every Shoe Starts From a Hand-Carved Wooden Mold

Here's something most people don't know about Clarks: every shoe design starts with a last, a wooden mold carved by hand from a single block of wood, shaped around the actual curves of a real foot rather than a flat pattern. This is part of why Clarks shoes tend to feel less boxy than a lot of mass-produced footwear, the shape was built around a foot from the very beginning, not added on as an afterthought.

Casual Slip-Ons for Everyday Wear

Styles like Orlene Slip and Easeway Sport are easy, no-fuss shoes for daily wear, comfortable enough for errands while still looking put together.

Sandals for Warmer Days

The Breezey and Cecily styles bring that same comfort-first approach into sandals, good options if you want Clarks' fit without a closed shoe.

A Lighter Everyday Flat

Drift Twist is a simpler, lighter flat for anyone who wants comfort without a lot of structure.

A Few Things Worth Knowing

• Several current styles here are marked down, worth checking sizing carefully since sale inventory doesn't always restock

• Leather styles soften with wear over time, while synthetic sandals feel comfortable from the very first wear

• Free 2-3 day priority shipping applies across our full women's footwear collection

Explore More: Women's Sandals · Women's Slip Ons · Men's Footwear