Why are 'ethical', 'vegan', 'sustainable' shoes so expensive !? I can find clothes that are made from eco materials online or in shops that are similar prices to les sustainable options, there are also a lot of not so affordable options too, but 'normal' price clothes are out there. When it comes to look for shoes though. I can buy a pair of normal shoes for €50 or less from high street stores onlline, but it feels impossible to get sustainable shoes at that price. I looked at the places that are listed in the directory on this site, and the only one that has any shoes for less than €100 is Vesh, and that is only because they are on sale. Anybody know any cheaper but still nice brands of shoes that are sustainable?

I love these - https://tooche.me/collections/shoes/products/apple-red-shoes-size-36?variant=19706946388041 but €300 is a LOT for everyday not fancy shoes. when I could find something similar looking but not made from the same materials for half of that price or less.

Nae vegan shoes has difderent price range shoes. Well not sure if all of them are sustainably & ethically made, but you can find many shoes which are considered sustainable. Talking about the price…. You already can find many high street fashion brands offering conscious products. If you are a small brand and take all of the steps to make not just the product sustainable, but all the process like energy, ethical and fair wages, sustainable made ( grown) materials, not high quantities, the product becomes expensive. While you are in UK you can find more sustainable and affordable brands for example using platform Wolfandbadger.com they have quite a few UK based companies as well from all around (it is useful tool, but sometimes buying direct is cheaper). As well I believe brands like Cariuma has shops in UK (even it is Brazilian company, but they are just simple one of the best sneakers companies). But so totally support the idea that any kind of sustainable items should be affordable. About fast fashion & sustainability, well of course it is better to buy sustainable, but what is behind it? If they just use sustainable fabrics, but there is no consideration about the process maybe it is still not enough. P.s. anyway it is still a business! Everyone wants to earn! Everlane has quite an interesting charts with the prices for different processes.

It's true Vegan shoes are expensive everywhere that I saw them, and this seems crazy to me. Sometimes it feels that they are trying to sell a lifestyle and not just a pair of shoes and a lot of people like me, do not want to buy a lifestyle just some shoes that are better for the planet.

I am Ashlynn Anybody know any cheaper but still nice brands of shoes that are sustainable? Koi are vegan and have lots of shoes for under €50 plus they have a of sales. https://www.koifootwear.com/

Quite an important fact is that vegan doesn't always mean sustainable. And most of the time sustainable & ethical stands for vegan as well. And it is great if you see a sustainability page on the brand websites as well some of them are open about the factories they are working with, so everyone can look up information about manufacturing process (some factories for example in China now is powered by green energy, have fair wages ect.).

I have some Tom's sneakers that are vegan and claim to be sustainable, but not all of their range is like that, just a small selection from it.

I don't worry much about what my shoes are made from or the price but also I do not buy many. I think I own four pairs of shoes, one that I wear to things like weddings and funerals, two for hot summer weather, sneakers and winter boots, and I do not remember when the last time i bought a new pair was. Really I think the whole point to being more 'sustainable' is not about the little details of what the thing you buy is made from but that you do not buy the ones you don't need. Some people buy hundreds of pairs of shoes. It does not matter what they are made from that is for sure a bigger eco footprint than someone who has less than 10 pairs.

Mirmar Some people buy hundreds of pairs of shoes Well I don't have hundreds, but probably I am the one who likes to have more pairs and just looking for the most sustainable ones to feel better about myself when buying. ☺️

Mirmar I think I own four pairs of shoes, one that I wear to things like weddings and funerals, two for hot summer weather, sneakers and winter boots I think that is 5, not 4? Piri Well I don't have hundreds, but probably I am the one who likes to have more pair Me too, I have a lot more than 4 or 5 pairs of shoes. ❤️ 👢

My only issue with paying a lot for shoes is that whether they are cheap ones or much more expensive and 'higher quality' I seem to destroy them at the same speed. I don't do anything particularly evil to them, I don't think I treat them badly, but they just seem to die and fall apart at a distressing speed.

The price of shoes!

Julie Brooks-Girskiene

John I heard that it is because you are 😈

Stasys-Girskis

Mirmar

I own about 5 pairs of shoes as well, but somehow there is no space for them to fit in the shoe cupboard at home.

Plus a pair of muddy boots for fields and places but they live in the car.

Piri

Stasys-Girskis but somehow there is no space for them to fit in the shoe cupboard at home.

@Julie Brooks-Girskiene

What do you think about it 😂

Mirmar

Stasys-Girskis That's all you need!

Julie Brooks-Girskiene

Piri That someone needs to make or buy a bigger closet.

Skylar

Ash I guess the main problem is that they just aren't mainstream yet which is why the high prices can be justified by the companies.

This is the big problem. We need to stop eco or sustainable or green or whatever we call it products from being special and make them the new normal.

Mirmar Stasys-Girskis That's all you need!

That really is not all the shoes you need, at least I hope not, or I have too many.

Ash

I guess the main problem is that they just aren't mainstream yet which is why the high prices can be justified by the companies. Hopefully, as more people start to look at purchasing sustainable shoes, the prices start to drop down a bit more.

Julie Brooks-Girskiene

Skylar This is the big problem. We need to stop eco or sustainable or green or whatever we call it products from being special and make them the new normal.

So true. Sustainable should not be a premium luxury thing, it should be the standard. We are very far away from that right now though.

Ash

Hopefully, it will happen soon though. I remember vegetarian/vegan meals used to be extremely expensive and something only a few people could afford. There is now a whole range of different brands offering good products and they are a lot more affordable now as well.

Skylar

Ash That's true, things get cheaper when there are more customers and more competition, but they have to have a price that enough people can afford to make customers and demand at the start, that's the difficult balance part I guess.

Piri

Skylar that's the difficult balance part I guess.

So true… if so called 'fast fashion, cheap' shoes would be make firstly ethical (fair wages for workers from material to the final product) probably the price would be higher as well. It is a complex circle.

But of course there are some handmade high end brand items and the high street sustainable products and as the demand is growing it is much easier to find reasonable price good products.

In some point I agree with @Mirmar we should buy what we need and avoid consumerism. As well waste.

Mirmar

Piri In some point I agree with @Mirmar we should buy what we need and avoid consumerism. As well waste.

It's part that, but as well I don't get excited about shoes and I do not like shopping.

I am Ashlynn

Mirmar I don't get excited about shoes and I do not like shopping.

😲😮 How can anyone not get excited about shoes? 😀

Mirmar

I am Ashlynn How can anyone not get excited about shoes?

I don't even like wearing shoes very much, I prefer to have naked feet most of the time when I am somewhere that I can.

I am Ashlynn

My other problem is that I have quite big feet and a lot of cute shoes just are not available in my size.

If I want to buy ethical shoes in my size it is double difficult

Skylar

I am Ashlynn My other problem is that I have quite big feet and a lot of cute shoes just are not available in my size.

I have really small feet and have a problem too, it used to be worse everything was just in middle sizes, but now there are more nice things available in my size.

What size are your feet?

Fille Verte

Skylar I have really small feet and have a problem too

Me also, I have size 35 and it is hard to find. 🤬

Piri

Fille Verte 35 and it is hard to find

Actually in Portugal and Spain production I found really wide choice of 35 & 36 sizes. I don't know why maybe b cause shot people have small feets usually with some exceptions.

I am Ashlynn

Fille Verte Me also, I have size 35 and it is hard to find.

I have UK size 9, so it is European size 43 - I can buy unisex sneakers, etc, but heels and boots are much harder to find.

At the moment they are using it to make some different sneakers, they are not pretty and the cheapest ones are about €500, but they say they will make more things from it, and make it available to other companies to use.

https://equilibrium.gucci.com/gucci-introduces-demetra-a-luxury-material-with-an-eco-friendly-ethos/

Vilte

Piri I guess that it should be easy to find small sizes in Asia, or import them.

Piri

Vilte sizes in Asia, or import them.

I kind of prefer made in EU. Even nowadays it is quite hard to know exactly they just put the sign made in EU so you n ed to check out in which country exactly.

@"Egle-K" well all of us have issues 😁

Egle-K

But if you have very average popular size feet then when there is a sale everything in your size is sold out first before you get to them! You can not win. 😞

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