By 1830, over a hundred years before Clarks Wallabees made their first appearance exports of both men's and women's footwear from France and England dominated the entire scene. Shoemaking was firmly entrenched around these two fashion centers but things were about to change thanks to the American way of doing things. Factory style mass production using semi-skilled labor uncut the cost of imports from overseas, especially with the introduction of the lock-stick sewing machine in the 1860s. This technological breakthrough meant shoes could be made quickly and in almost the same fashion as Henry Ford produced automobiles in a quick efficient fashion.

The invention of the sewing machine was the start of a series of major changes that were to take place in the shoemaking industry over the next thirty years. All these machines were produced in the United States and they secured the American ability to mass produce footwear at great speed with little cost. At this time, the European tradition of hand crafting shoes was all but lost. However, some of the European shoe companies survived by changing their focus and targeting their efforts exclusively on the high end very rich.

Through a changing workforce and insecure economy due to WWI, many shoe companies found it hard to survive. However, a new process for cemented or glue soles brought the cost down again and then the focus changed again during WWII from style to durability. The time for Clarks Wallabees was approaching. But the death knell for many American and European shoe manufacturers came with the development of the Southeast Asian shoe manufacturers in the 1950s and 1960s. Cheaper labor costs combined with the new slush molded plastic footwear resulted in the rise of the most profitable center in the world for the sports shoe. This has been the most popular shoe in the world since the 1960s.

While there are still a small group of hand shoe crafters around the world, their numbers are dwindling and they cater to a specific clientele. High-fashion footwear is produced with a small amount of skill in today's market. Workers whose greatest skill is computer programming make a large amount of this footwear today. The dominance of the Asian footwear market is obvious today and the market for what was once called the sneaker is one of the biggest markets for shoes worldwide.

However, all the technology that has gone into shoemaking over the years has resulted in some great shoes like the Clarks Wallabee Low Top Womans Sand from Clarks Wallabees. These are a great comfortable shoe from the people at Clarks and they make a variety of great shoes although the best is the Clarks Wallabees line.