After buying a $70 pair of Vans at famous footwear and having them literally fall apart after using them as daily walking shoes, I’ve realized the quality of shoes overall has gone down over the last decade or so.
I don’t mind if they cost $100 or more, are there medium-light weight walking shoes that can withstand the horrors of walking on pavement? I remember checking out some Ecco shoes at the mall years ago, didn’t pull the trigger as they were almost $300 but the way the construction was described to me it sounds like those could last 5+ years.
What shoes do you have that you wear almost daily (not during the winter), and have had for almost a year but aren’t falling apart?
Topic I know about: I worked for ECCO corporate for about 7 years, and have a pair of Ecco shoes I made myself. I no longer work there.
A well fit pair of ECCO’s can last multiple years. They genuinely do try and make quality shoes and there’s a lot of work done to keep the materials and manufacturing processes producing high quality shoes.
That being said, any shoe made with a polyurethane sole (like ECCO and most shoes nowadays) will not last for a lifetime. Polyurethane is a great material but not a lifetime material. The only shoes which could qualify as buy it for life material are ones with leather soles, but they require occasional resoleing, so are a ship of thesus sort of affair. A pair of ECCO’s lasting 5 years is a reasonable goal but not one always attained.
You say you were wearing them everyday - this will decrease the overall lifetime of a pair of shoes. Your feet sweat and the inside gets wet, the leather uppers benefits from being allowed to dry out. Conversely, any shoes you own with polyurethane soles must be worn occasionally (a few times a year minimum) or the soles will harden and then crack and fall apart when being worn. ECCO used to get a lot of angry feedback from customers that bought expensive dress shoes only to wear to a wedding once a year, and they fell apart after only having been worn 2-4 times. You are best owning 2-4 pairs of shoes that you rotate through day to day, this will extend the life of all of them longer, so you will spend less overall (but need to start by buying multiple pairs). I would get pairs from different companies so you can compare how long they last and which you find are most comfortable for your feet. Some other companies that are in the same price and quality range as ECCO would be Cole Haan, Clarks, Timberland and Rockport. One of them might fit you much better then Vans or ECCO or whatever.
Finally, a good fit is key. If the shoe is too small, or just not the right shape for your foot, then whatever part of the shoe your foot is pushing against will wear out much faster then the rest of the shoe. This is actually a problem I have with ECCO’s personally. My feet are wide just behind my toes, and my shoes always fail right there where my foot is stretching the leather more then elsewhere, earlier then they would if they fit me better. Seeing how I was getting free and/or deeply discounted shoes, I was ok with this.
Shoe manufacturers use a form called a “last” when they manufacture shoes, the last determines the shape and fit of the shoe. Different companies have different lasts based on their own research and goals for fit and the kinds of customers they’re targeting. It may be that Van’s uses a last shape that doesn’t match up with your foot shape very well. Perhaps ECCO’s will fit you well, perhaps not at all.
If you’re in the US, ECCO runs sales every other month or so when the already on-sale shoes will be discounted another 30-40% (I just looked and they’re having one now…). You can pick up a pair for $100-150 pretty easily. Usually around holidays at a minimum. Keep an eye out on their website, and get a pair pretty cheap during a sale. Or, check out of there is an outlet near you, the outlets have legitimately low prices, especially on the clearance wall, though usually those shoes are also ugly AF which is how they end up there.
Anyone has questions about shoe production or ECCO, I’d be happy to answer. They make pretty good shoes and run their own, non sweatshop factories, so I do recommended the shoes. Their US office is run by a few complete idiots though so I don’t recommend working there.
Great post.
I will add that I’m a long time Clarks buyer and I can wholeheartedly recommend them as well. Well made shoes (provided their layout fits your foot), comfortable (look for their models with cushioning soles) and long lasting. If you do what OP advised and rotate a few pairs they will last ridiculously long.
Please note that even if a brand’s layout fits your foot and even if a pair seems to fit well, there may still be individual models that don’t fit something. For example I am a “heel-stepper” and there are Clarks models where the rear edge would destroy my ankles if I were to use them. What I’m getting at is, either try them in person, or buy online from a shop with a good return policy.
That must be so cool to wear shoes that you’ve literally made
I‘d generally advice against sneakers. If you want shoes that last, get some quality leather shoes, ideally Goodyear welted ones. When properly taken care of, they can last many years and can then be repaired. Also they will fit very well, after being broken in.
I tend to wear Ecco’s (not crazy expensive ones, more in the 120-150€ range). I quite like them in terms of being strong and looking good enough. But I think they last me about 2-3 years.
Yea Love Ecco, too. They are pricy. But totally worth it. For 2-3 times the price you get shoes that last at least 2-3 times as long and are a hell of a lot more comfortable.
First, check out the various Buy It For Life communities here on lemmy:
My answer: I have a pair of Keen boots that I inherited from my late uncle. I don’t know how long he has them, but they were already well-used when I got them. I’ve been wearing them for seven years, and while they’re no longer waterproof, they’re still sturdy.
I wore the crap out of my pair of New Balance skate shoes, forgot the model. But they’re still going strong. Ive biked with cages, walked, work construction, whatever, they’re just dirty but they’re still holding up.
My decade old Red Wings shoes are still going with some minor maintenance. Their boots last even longer I’ve heard. For skateshoes I try to limit how many days a year I wear them and buy them on sale. Skate sole gum is make for grip not durability and isn’t going to last long.
I cycle between 4 pairs of shoes in summer, two pairs of boots in winter, and one pair of all year shoes. I have had them all for over ten years. Tips:
- Buy Goodyear welted shoes
- Use shoe trees
- Don’t wear the same pair two days in a row
I also prefer to buy shoes made in UK, Italy, or US but that is just preference for perceived quality and definitely higher paid workers than most countries that mass produce shoes.
If you want a specific recommendation go with Allen Edmond Strandmoks. That’s my all year pair. Great shoes.
Use shoe trees Don’t wear the same pair two days in a row
People really underestimate how much better your footware lasts if you take care of it by cycling between a few pairs and providing good interior support when isn’t in use.
Meanwhile I just wear the same pair of shoes for ten years or so until it starts to get holes in the toes, then get extreme anxiety at the thought of trying to find a new, suitable replacement.
I love my Altra road running shoes. My mother and sister (both work on-their-feet-all-day jobs) are also fans and can get at least a year out of their pairs. They’re sturdy and last about 300+ miles, and if you get a dud they’ll make it right. My sister once had a pair disintegrate after a couple months and got them replaced for free.
Altra is a bit like blue cheese, though: either you love them or hate them, and both sides think the other is wrong. People with narrow forefeet find them too squishy and unsteady; those of us with wider forefeet are comfortable for the first time ever.
Also, if your budget allows, it helps to get two pairs of shoes so you can alternate days. Especially if you live in a humid climate. By alternating two pairs of shoes so they fully dry between days, you get more than twice as much life from them. (Obviously that’s not an option for everyone, but it’s good to do if you can)
Red Wing. Pricey, but they’ll last forever. Made in the US too.
I second this. Have both a pair of boots and shoes. Even though I haven’t been good at keeping them the boots has lasted eight years by now, and the shoes three. The boots will need a resole at some point, but for now all that has broken is one of the shoelaces. Shoes just got dirty so far
Running shoes last 300-500 miles, and can last even longer if you’re just walking in them.
Brooks’ Gost 15 are my current pair and hold up more than a year.
Brooks Ghost is the best shoe that I have ever put on my foot
I was worried about spending so much when i bought mine, but damn, these are comfortable shoes and while fairly new, have lasted well so far.
Solomon shoes are expensive, but generally last a few years. They tend to blow out in the ankle first. Really comfortable too.
I’ve bought about five pairs of the waterproof Salomon trekking shoe models, wearing them daily I always got holes in the material after about one year.
I usually just get the normal ones. The waterproof ones are OK, but they make my feet really hot and sweaty after 5-6 hours.
I have some la sportiva shoes right now, that started falling apart at the 6mo-1yr mark. So annoying.
The YouTube Channel “Rose Anvil” is a leather worker and their entire channel is about shoes. They routinely take big brands and cut then in half to do an in-depth breakdown of their materials amd construction.
They made a video recently about a brand someone else mentioned in this thread.
They also have videos where they show their favorite shoes from the past year and what they like to wear personally.
Here is an alternative Piped link(s): https://piped.video/watch?v=QEsy1KGkKKo
Piped is a privacy-respecting open-source alternative frontend to YouTube.
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Not sure how available they are internationally, but Lowa shoes generally last quite a few years for me. They’re focused on hiking and sports, but they have a few everyday models as well.
I lost about 300lbs over a couple of years with walking being my primary form of exercise. I started with a couch to 10k program and for most of the time I was losing weight I was walking about 8 miles a day on sidewalks and paved walking paths. I had been wearing sketchers walking shoes for a while and they are very comfortable and good for light walking but would only last about 3 months while I was morbidly obese and walking that much. I went to a walking store and asked for recommendations and left with a pair of Saucony that I wore daily for almost a year. I’ve stuck with Saucony and since I weigh a lot less and have switched to an exercise bike for my primary cardio exercise my current pair is about 2 years old and still going strong. They have a much stiffer sole than the sketchers, new balance, or Nike that I have had in the past. I do still use Sketchers for hiking boots.
I also walk as part of the losing weight regimen and I use Columbia trail running shoes.
IMO anything with that horrible foam (most shoes at this point) is going to last a year TOPS. In fact, running shoes with foam, are supposed to be limited to around 300 miles.
If you are talking about something like a half cab, that has the standard vans soles, yeah, I agree quality has gone down some (same with those new chuck 70s). They feel cheaper, and are made from far cheaper materials.
Personally, I have tons of shoes that are decades old, and still going, but I do not own any shoes with foam (mostly chuck taylors). And I’m apparently not very hard on shoes, somehow.
I think the unfortunate reality is you’ll have to buy some expensive, high quality shoes, or expect to throw shoes out yearly.
There are companies like this one who claim to resole running shoes, but I don’t know how far they can/do go, and have never used them before.