Barratts

Barratts is a footwear shop that was once located in Church Street but has now relocated in the heart of Liverpool One. The shop has a new look to it now; its image appears more bright and colourful, plus its wooden sign makes it seem more elegant.
In terms of the footwear it sells, it hasn’t changed much and the size of the shop is approximately the same as its old store. There are (as usual) the typical types of shoes on offer with a bit of everything on display for both genders.
I find it more glamorous than its previous store but Barratts have always sold shoes at expensive prices, which makes it a gamble. Their quality is questionable. I always remembered I bought a pair of shoes here when I was younger and they didn’t last long. I hope by now, they’re improved.

Once the definition of square, Barratts are in the midst of trying to reinvent themselves as a brand. They’ve introduced their own limited edition, high fashion collection, launched their own iPhone application and set up an award winning online shop with free shipping and returns. They’ve also opened a handful of more sophisticated, light and airy stores like this new one in Liverpool ONE.
Unfortunately, the majority of the stock looks as dull as before. There are some nice high heels, cut-​out sandals and handbags in the window but inside there are rows and rows of clunky and MOR shoes that pale in comparison to brands like Aldo or Kurt Geiger. Ditto for the menswear which aside from the classic desert boots, is dull as ditch-​water.
The one area Barratts still shines is their extensive range of sizes. They do select heels and ballerina pumps every size from 1 to 10.

A new wooden sign and some snazzy new glass display units are not going to disguise the fact that Barratts is where my mum used to take me to buy my uncomfortable and embarrassing school shoes. Brown leather sandals with a faintly floral pattern on them — half buckle, half velcro. I was only four and these shoes made me a social outcast. I’m not sure if it counts as child cruelty per se but I will definitely be talking to a psychiatrist about it in later life.
But I went in anyway, undeterred by the cold sweats and night terrors brought on by my boyhood footwear experiences, and honestly it was as if I had never been away. The same racks of sensible shoes too jazzy to really go unnoticed but too garish to be considered nice. And they’re one of the only place doing those sort of tan suedette shoe-​trainer crossbreeds; those faux-​Campers that were, if not popular, at least ubiquitous in the early to mid 00’s. Warning: no man between the age of 20 and 65 should be wearing Velcro shoes.
They also sell a range of branded shoes and trainers from retro-​but-​still-​not-​cool Gola as well as the obligatory Converse hi-​tops and Timberland boots but so does almost everywhere so it’s not too much of a selling point. They’re cheap, that’s in their favour — although not for me, as it costs me a little bit of myself every time I set foot inside here.