The five trainer brands fashion insiders are buying instead of Nike

Trainer trends are mystifyingly mercurial. Lest we forget Rishi Sunak and his beloved (and subsequently doomed) Adidas Sambas, or the fact that Nike lost 31 per cent of its market value in the first half of 2024 alone. The brand has been dubbed anathema to Gen-Z aesthetes, who balk at the idea of wearing the same thing as their parents. As with most things, it’s wise not to be too hasty.

I’ve relegated my Sambas to the back of my wardrobe rather than sending them off to my local charity shop; after all, trainer trends constantly ebb and flow. A case in point: I recently started re-wearing a pair of Isabel Marant wedged trainers, which I bought in 2013.

Eleven years on, it feels like the right time to revive the trend. Moreover, when I asked two of my most in-the-know pals to share their must-have trainers, they replied in unison: “Nike Shox!” (ie. those stack-soled shoes that look like they might have been made from Lego… Perhaps Nike’s luck is on the up!). Confused? We’ve rounded up the trainers worth knowing, whatever your style tribe.

Rich Mom style

When a certain tribe of glossily-turned out private school mothers take their position at the school gates, they are dressed in a uniform almost as strictly prescribed as their progenies’ – currently, it’s the prerequisite horseshoe jeans, a big coat and a pair of trainers that, to the untrained eye, may look a little grubby. You’d be wrong; they’re made by Golden Goose and come intentionally distressed. If designedly dirty footwear gives you the shivers, Autry does a nice, clean pair. Katie Holmes was recently spotted wearing the brand’s Medalist model with tailored trousers, a wool coat, and a baseball cap.

Cool dad vibes

The denouncement of the Adidas Samba leaves a gaping hole in the wardrobes of trendy dads everywhere. May I suggest the Handball Spezial, which isn’t too dramatic a departure from the Samba, and comes with a more respectable endorsement – Andrew Garfield, to be exact. The actor has been wearing a grey suede version on the press tour for new film We Live in Time. Meanwhile, The Last of Us actor Pedro Pascal favours New Balance, specifically the 237 and 550 trainers, which he has been donning with jeans and logo T-shirts.

The off-duty runners

Gone are the days of ugly running shoes; get more bang for your buck with a pair that you can wear outside on and off the track. Olivia Wilde swears by the Hoka Bondi 8, a generously cushioned trainer that works for running both marathons and errands. For something more streamlined, head to On – a favourite of Jennifer Lopez, who is partial to the Cloudnova style. Asics and Salomon also make a lot of good-looking trainers that you can sprint, jog or saunter in. I know which I’ll be doing.

Gen-Z approved sneaks

The Puma Speedcat is, if you didn’t know, the trainer of choice for Gen-Z. According to the Lyst Index (a quarterly ranking of fashion’s hottest brands/products), the retro-looking shoe was the third most-trending product of the third quarter of 2024, with demand spiking by 532 per cent in August. If you really want to impress (or horrify) your style-obsessed teen, pick up a pair of the aforementioned Nike Shox – creative consultant and social strategist Tora Northman tells me they are her choice for “shoe of the moment” – or Isabel Marant’s wedged trainers; first released in 2012, they’re being revived by Gen-Z TikTokers, who are buying second-hand versions on Vinted and eBay.

The show-stoppers

Let us consider the elusive and expensive designer-collab shoe. (Exhibit A: the New Balance x Miu Miu suede trainer). It may seem like an anathema to consider paying a few hundred pounds for a designer trainer collab. But if you think of the wears-per-buy you’re likely to get from a shoe you can walk in, well, we’ll leave the maths and the guilty conscience up to you. Happily, there are much cheaper options out there that score highly on the style front. Adidas Original’s long-running collaboration with Wales Bonner is also particularly popular among the fashionable set. “I collect them,” says journalist and Season Zine founder Felicia Pennant, whose current favourites are a pair of Superstars in croc-effect leather. For something a little more purse-friendly, I wholeheartedly recommend Adidas’s SL 72 trainers in silver; they’ve won compliments from some of my most stylish friends.

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