When it comes to fashion for vegans the rules are quite simple – no leather, no wool, no silk, no fur – and there are plenty of options to choose from as many pieces are made from cotton or polyester, and you can get faux leather or faux fur. Stereotypically vegan shoes are ‘ugly’ and unsuitable for the fashion conscious – is this why people shun them so much?
I can absolutely say with 100% confidence that not all vegan shoes are ugly, you can see from the images in this post just how pretty vegan shoes can be!
Why are some shoes not vegan?
Obviously there’s the fact that so many brands use leather which is absolutely not vegan. Those shoes at the highest end of the market are typically made of leather because it’s described as durable – as though it’s the only durable material out there – and looks good. There is also the use of glue in shoes that may not be vegan, recently there have been debates about converse and whether or not they are vegan – the answer is they can’t confirm that the shoes are vegan because of the glue used which can contain animal derived ingredients.
So what are the alternatives?
Ethletic Trainers
If you are looking for sneakers in a similar style to converse then Ethletic is definitely for you. Not only suitable for vegans, these shoes are made with Fairtrade certified organic cotton, FSC certified fairly traded rubber and the production process is fair trade too, with a 15% fair trade premium paid for every pair made. They have a number of different styles available to suit your style in a range of colours.
Wills London
For a smarter look you have Wills London with classic shoe styles like brogues that are animal and human friendly. They are typically made with high quality Italian faux leather and are PETA approved. Not only are they vegan, they are also ethically made in Portugal so do not contribute to the human rights abuses that regular ‘fast fashion’ does. Wills London produces beautiful vegan shoe alternatives for men and women that are comfortable and durable, so are really worth the price.
There are many other vegan shoe brands out there offering you gorgeous choices that really shouldn’t be overlooked. I know many people would rather not hurt animals purely for fashion reasons where possible, so we should all stop shunning vegan fashion! What are your favourite vegan shoe brands?