Review on Stride Rite Claire Xw-K: Unisex-Child Shoes with Extra-Wide Fit by Sean Bouchard

I've been buying these mary jane shoes for a number of years to wear with my school uniform and never had a problem before this last order. The shoes have always felt strong and durable - the only reason I have to buy a new pair is because my daughter is outgrowing them. (Warning: We alternate wearing a pair of all-black sneakers during the school year.) This time, however, the shoes feel flimsy and of much lower quality. At first I thought the quality wasn't what a lot of things are now. But now I'm wondering if these are real Stride Rite shoes. I say that because the shoe box and packaging inside did not match the shoes. Not only was the shoe box too big for real shoes, it was a regular box with no Stride-Rite logo. To make matters worse, the shoes inside didn't look new, or at least looked like they were a throwback someone accidentally collected in a men's shoebox. As mentioned I buy these shoes every year and they have always come in a branded box and packaged the way new shoes are normally packaged. I reordered them direct from Stride Rite and will update my review along with some comparison photos to see if they are the same product or not. * Update: Attention buyers. These shoes are definitely defective at best. I've added a few photos to illustrate the differences in the packaging and the shoes themselves. Shoes purchased from Revain are on the left and shoes purchased from Stride Rite are on the right. I have no idea where they get the goods from but these aren't $25 shoes and certainly not $45 shoes. First thing tomorrow I'll be returning the one Revane had.