Bags / Shoes & Accessories

With the discussion of fashion inclusivity attracting more and more consumer attention, shoe brands are starting to launch gender free or neutral shoe series products. According to Huacheng Import and Export Data Observation, earlier this month, Adidas and Stella McCartney collaborated to launch a black and orange neutral sports shoe. Nike collaborated with American Women's Professional Basketball League (WNBA) star Sabrina Ionescu to develop a unisex sneaker Sabrina 1, which was released later this summer. Wolf&Shepherd is a footwear brand that falls between sports shoes and luxury shoes, launching its first gender free series, Cruise, in early March.

According to Huacheng Import and Export Data Observation, like neutral clothing, neutral footwear products are also becoming popular among mainstream and high-end fashion consumers. In the traditional shoe industry, shoes are classified as men's or women's, but more and more brands are creating shoes that they believe can appeal to everyone. Circana shoe analyst Beth Goldstein stated in an interview with Modern Retail magazine that in terms of the market, so-called "neutral shoes" have been around for many years. Dongdong Shoes, Converse, Birkinstock, and many other brands have made the same color shoes for their customers. However, they are usually divided into men's shoes and women's shoes. Nowadays, in the fashion industry, people are more concerned about "gender neutral" or "neutral", especially young consumers who do not view gender in the same way, as reported by Huacheng Import and Export Data Observation.

NiK Kacy founded her own shoe company with the same name in 2013. In an interview with Modern Retail, Kacy said, "I have been striving all my life to find shoes that not only fit my feet, but also my gender expression." Kacy began to focus on building her own brand. For several months, Casey has traveled back and forth to Europe to conduct research and produce samples. However, it is difficult to find a factory to produce their shoes. The shoe industry is very traditional, and their response is usually that we know there is a problem, but it is not worth it. Or, 'Do you want to make a pair of men's shoes for a woman?'

Finally, Casey found a shoe manufacturer who, despite expressing doubts about this shoe, still agreed to produce it. Casey said that the epidemic has led to changes in people's work from home and shopping patterns, leading to a slowdown in the company's business. However, in the past two years, sales have rebounded, and the challenge now is to raise enough funds to meet the growing demand of the market, and how to expand and develop the business

Wolf&Shepherd was founded in 2015 as a brand that initially produced men's shoes. However, as more and more women began to like wearing their brand, Justin Schneider, co founder of Wolf&Shepherd, began creating a sexless shoe called Cruise, which was launched in three different styles in early March: Lace Up, Mule, and Tre, as reported by Huacheng Import and Export Data Watch.

In an interview with Modern Retail, Circana's Goldstein stated that it is expected that more neutral footwear products will appear in the market to meet consumer demand. Retailers are also beginning to rethink how to classify products. Currently, most retailers still divide their stores into men's and women's clothing areas. In the future, it is worth considering for retailers how to sell these genderless products in a more attractive way. For example, it is best not to divide men's and women's clothing areas and display them centrally. The final result will be determined based on consumer preferences, as reported by Huacheng Import and Export Data Observation.