Running shoes have evolved quite rapidly over the past several years. With all the innovation, it can be hard to keep up with the latest trends. To help runners prepare for what’s “next” in running shoe development, I did my “own research” by taking a gander into my crystal ball. Here are my five best running shoe trends I predict for the future. I invite you to hold me to these; I think you’ll be very surprised to see how many of them come true!
1. Pairs of two different shoes
Absolutely no one asked for a smaller shoe rotation, however, fearing bad reviews of new shoes, shoe companies will begin selling pairs comprised of two entirely different shoes. One shoe will have a high stack and the other will be low to the ground. The left one will be firm as a rock and the right one soft as a cloud or pillow. The right one will have a low drop and the left’s drop will be north of 12 mm. One will have a plate and the other will be plate-less. Trail enthusiasts fear not: one of the two shoes will have lugs.
It’s truly the best of both worlds. Shoe names are already too long, and with a different name for each shoe in the pair, they’re about to get a whole lot longer! A do-it-all shoe may not exist yet, but pretty soon there’ll be a do-it-all pair. They say you can’t please everybody, but with each pair providing something for everyone, shoe companies will be the first ones to prove that theory wrong. That is, until injuries rise and every run in the mismatched pair makes runners feel down in the dumps. It’ll only be a matter of time before they dump on the shoes in shoe reviews and dump the shoes in the recycling bin.
2. Shoe prices will be fair and reasonable
Ha! I couldn’t resist a good joke! This will never happen. The production cost of a shoe isn’t anywhere close to the price we pay. Sure, there’s the research and development component of a shoe, but shoe innovation happens only every few years. Often, companies just churn out the same models year after year with only slight differences to the upper or outsole. So, I ask you, how much R&D is there really?
There’s a price to pay for innovation and that high price is more expensive running shoes. They say what goes up must come down, however, running shoe prices will only continue to rise. Someone must pay the piper. Spoiler alert: that “someone” is us.
“Companies won’t chase rainbows; they’ll stick to the beaten path and sell only vanilla colorways that attract dirt, mud, and grass stains. Because if nature stains an all-white shoe, is it still white?”
3. Shoes made only in all-white colorways
All-white running shoes are all the rage these days, and while it took me a while to come around on snow-colored pairs, I finally broke down and went broke buying yet another pair of shoes, this time it was the all-new Saucony Kinvara Pro. Down the road, companies won’t go chasing rainbows; they’ll stick to the beaten path and only sell vanilla colorways that attract dirt, mud, and grass stains. Because if an all-white shoe gets stained by nature’s elements, can it still be considered white?
They’ll claim they’re saving the planet by scrapping dyes and other colorants. In reality, they’re just saving face — it’s all about saving dough. And who could blame them? With shoe prices potentially dropping, they have to make a profit somehow!
4. Every shoe will have a plate
If it’s starting to seem like there are too many plated shoes, it’s because companies are putting plates in shoes that don’t need them. Everyone is after the newest plated super trainers and super shoes that promise quicker recoveries, faster paces, and more fond gazes from pedestrians and drivers alike. You’ve heard of carbon, nylon, and TPU plates, now, get ready for the introduction of salad, dinner, and dessert plates in shoes!
It may sound silly now, but people laughed at Edison when he claimed he would invent the light bulb. It’ll likely take much trial and error to make these porcelain, ceramic, and fine china plates work, but never forget: Edison didn’t fail more than 10,000 times to invent the light bulb — he “successfully found 10,000 ways that will not work.” Hmm, but with all that money and time spent on research and development, shoe prices are definitely not dropping any time soon.
“With ‘toe pull tabs’, runners will find shoes distracting to run in and utterly hideous to look at. The most inconsequential, worthless part of a shoe will only get more inconsequential and worthless.”
5. Pull tabs on the front of shoes
Just as plates spiral out of control, the number (and size) of heel pull tabs are getting out of hand foot. I’m still not sure what their actual purpose is. Is it really that difficult to put on a running shoe that we need a silly loop to grab onto for support? They’re not snow or rain boots, they’re a regular pair of running shoes. If you need a pull tab, then you’re doing the wrong activity. Go fishing. Or, quit your day job, buy a pair of work boots and enter the construction industry. Beats sitting at a desk all day.
With the introduction of “toe pull tabs” in shoes, runners will find the shoes distracting to run in and utterly hideous to look at. The most inconsequential, worthless part of a shoe will only get more inconsequential and worthless. And with a pull tab on both the front and back of a shoe, how will runners know which one to use? We have a hard enough time already choosing a shoe to run in. Talk about technology causing more problems than it solves.
With such a firm grasp on the running industry, it was hard for me to limit this blog post to just five predictions. These were the ones I felt most strongly about, and I’ll stick by them until I’m proven wrong. Fortunately, I have my “research” to back me up. If these predictions sound idiotic to you, I’d advise you do your own research.
