I would say go with whatever shoe you like that is sold by a reputable children's shoe store that has employees who actually know how to measure and fit children's shoes. The brand doesn't matter as much as the expertise of the person doing the fitting. Personally, I do like Clarks and that's mostly always what we've bought, just because locally, they have the best store with the most knowledgeable employees. There is another children's shoe store in our nearby town, but I felt they didn't really know what they were doing when we went in there. We've bought Startrite and Clarks and I personally think Clarks hold up a bit better (Startrite shoes, especially for the really little ones, I think tend to be kinda ugly but that's just me). I don't ever just buy shoes off the rack at a non-specialty store and I'm really careful about how they fit and don't feel confident fitting them myself. We only ever have one pair of shoes at a time though (plus a pair of wellies), until she outgrows them and we get the next pair, so I pick something that matches most things, and that's what makes Clark's affordable. Otherwise, they are kinda pricey.
