It's the time of year that parents dread - school shoe shopping.
Not only are stores usually packed out with irate mums and dads trying to get their kids to stay still long enough to try them on, but it usually ends up costing a small fortune too.
Well step forward Deichmann. Not only does the store offer fittings without appointments, its back to school offer is saving families a small fortune.
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It was the retailer's Arndale branch where I took my children to this week to see exactly what the place has to offer.
There's actually a really wide choice of school shoes - with its cheaper own brands such as Graceland and Memphis One and well-known brands like Start Rite and Hush Puppies.
It also recently added Clarks to its catalogue and is now selling a small range of Kickers, which has gone down a storm with shoppers.
But it's the annual back to school offer that really pulls the punters in, as for every pair that you buy from the selected styles, you get a second pair half price.
And it includes trainers too, with everything from Nike, Fila, Skechers, Puma and adidas up for grabs, so if, like most kids, yours need footwear for PE as well as school shoes, there are some big savings to be made.
After much debate - I told you there's a wide choice - mine opted for Deichmann's own brands of school shoes, my daughter choosing a pair of Graceland buckle-fasten shoes for £24.99 and my son opting for some Memphis One black chunky lace-up shoes from the 'teen boys' section, costing £19.99.
With my daughter often struggling to get shoes to fit properly to her narrow feet, it was also a godsend to have staff on hand offering insoles and heel grips to help her get the right fit.
As with most kids their age - 13 and 11 - mine are both now showing more of an interest in brand names so when it came to choosing trainers, they both wanted a pair of Nikes.
Having splashed out on a pair the last time my son needed trainers I have to say they have gone the distance compared with previous unbranded ones. I'd like to think he's more inclined to look after them given the cost, but I doubt that's the case.
Not all the trainers are included in the offer but there's certainly a wide selection - and no shortage of the ones that are.
My eldest picked up a pair of black and white Nike Revolution trainers for £47.99, while my youngest went for the all-black Nike Air Max at £44.99.
The best bit about the offer is that while it's 'buy one get one half price' that doesn't mean that if you're buying four pairs or more it's only the cheapest two you'll get for half price.
Deichmann staff basically put them through the till 'so it works out fairer for the customer'. So in our case one pair of school shoes was half price and one pair of trainers was half price - bringing our bill down from 139.95 to £107.45, an overall saving of £32.50.
Obviously for smaller feet and unbranded trainers you'd be spending a lot less, but it's a decent saving and when everything else seems to be going up, at least it's one way of bringing the cost down.
You can see the shoes and trainers included in the offer here and if you already know what sizes you're after you can order online, with 10% off your first order if you sign up to emails here.
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