These Sustainable Footwear Brands Will Change The Way You Wear Luxury Sneakers

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By Cassell Ferere originally published on Forbes.com

Footwear has been a polluter of the fashion industry since the sneaker revolution of the 80s. Once modern shoe styles were introduced to society, fashion met the demand at the cost of the environment and the working-class people under inhumane labor laws in third-world and developing countries. But shoes that ‘last’ - the name of the block of foot-shaped wood that forms the shoe silhouette - come from passionate shoemakers who care about the circularity of their footwear production.

Undoubtedly, footwear from Italy has been the gold standard in men’s shoes. Craftsmanship is the essence of fashion production around the European continent. Portugal is one country stepping up to fill the quality product void, away from fast fashion, for many luxury brands: Portugal can produce their luxury goods but at more efficient pricing. The fashion trade show and fair Modtissimo is heightening the cache of Portugal in fashion. A partner in facilitating business and production from neighboring countries to provide high-quality fashion products.

Wayz: For A Lifestyle

Born in Portugal, Wayz is defining high-end shoe production with quality that is affordable and ethical. Wayz takes the clean palette of a minimal shoe and adds leather detailing that strengthens its design's architecture. This is complemented with simple aesthetics supported by a thicker outsole.

Their primary partners in production are locally sourced factories, family-owned and well-known in the region for shoe-making. Artisans craft each piece of the shoe no more than 70 kilometers from the design headquarters in Porto, Portugal. The artisans are paid fair wages under good working conditions and respected labor laws.

Wayz utilizes recycled and upcycled materials that are sourced naturally from local companies. Recycled plastic waste collected from the Mediterranean Sea by Mipe, located in Felgueiras, Portugal, makes up the polyester upper. The shoe is also made of recycled 70% recycled rubber, provided by Bolflex also located in Felgueiras. Their vegetable-tanned leather is hypoallergenic and sourced from by-products of the cattle industry, and chromium and metal-free. A biodegradable inner sole made from latex, linen, wool, and wood fibers, and cotton laces round out the rest of the well-built shoe, with sleek design and stance.

Koio And Regenerative Farming

Koio is an advocate and protagonist of what is called regenerative farming. Unlike commercial or modern conventional farming, where one animal is designated to an enclosure, regenerative farming is bio-diverse in animal and plant life, essentially growing wild without designation. Regenerative farming provides a naturally sustainable ecosystem for plants, animals, and the land. It is a simple, and natural process that has Koio shoes set on a regenerative future.

Producing its shoe line in Le Marche, Italy, by master craftsman, Koio has locally sourced leather, suedes, and recycled materials in the making of each pair. Every pair touches the hands of 42 different artisans before a customer can wear a pair. Even the soles of the shoes and the shoeboxes are sourced in the surrounding region of the Marche manufacturer. The Italian-made shoes are designed with 70 years of skill, with last, or “forma” in Italian, being the soul of the Koio brand. Their head last maker, Gianluca, uses wooden last that date back as far as the 1940s.

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