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Words by Tamara Abraham, Fashion Editor.
How your choice of shoes reveals where in the UK you live
From rugged boots in Scotland to sandals in the south, we track down the bestselling styles in every part of the country.
It’s often said that you can tell a lot about a person from their shoes. There’s some truth to this: we get indications of the kind of work they do – or don’t; lifestyle; music tastes; whether they subscribe to passing trends, are indifferent, or even consider themselves above it all.
Your choice of footwear can also reveal which part of the UK you’re from. It makes sense: people living in colder, wetter and windier parts of the country (we see you, Scotland) will rely on all-weather boots for a greater portion of the year than those in London. No wonder the Danner Mountain Light boot is a year-round bestseller at the Epitome boutique in Edinburgh, while Phase Eight says slingbacks sell better in the south than they do in the north.
“Typically there is a north-south split in our orders, with boots and chunkier styles selling well further north, versus more formal styles in the south,” says Lizzie Darby of Made the Edit, a London boutique with an e-commerce arm that ships nationwide. “However, we are seeing an increase in more dressy styles in the north, although the colours are more practical than in London and the south.”
Regional culture and industry shapes our choices too, and nobody understands that better than those who do the buying at the stores which populate our local high streets. Just ask Justine Mills, owner of Liverpool high-fashion favourite Cricket, which has become famous for outfitting footballers’ wives. Her stock will look quite different from an equally high-end boutique in the south-east, because she’s so attuned to what her most loyal customers, among them Coleen Rooney, will buy.
Of course you can’t generalise completely when there are such diverse factors at play, and there are styles which sell well everywhere – flat Mary Janes, fashion trainers, anything and everything silver. LK Bennett reports a shift across the board to block heels. The bestselling shoes in different parts of the country makes for intriguing reading all the same.
So does your footwear collection match local trends? Scroll on to find out…
It will surprise nobody that Londoners are au fait with current trends. It’s also a huge city, so a hot buy will mean different things to different people. One consistency across the retailers we polled? Flat Mary Janes with a softly squared-off toe – particularly at John Lewis and LK Bennett. It makes sense: most people get around on foot or using public transport, which makes comfortable (yet unquestionably cool) shoes an essential.
At Made the Edit, it’s the pointy flats that always sell out. “It’s not unusual to have customers in our store buying multiple pairs of the “Izzy” style in gold, silver, navy, black and pink snake,” says Darby. “It’s a classic style, beautifully made and super versatile.”
Londoners love an “It” trainer, and while demand for Adidas Sambas and Gazelles may have cooled thanks to our political leaders, there’s still enthusiasm for Salomons, as well as New Balance 550s, the last drop of which sold out rapidly at Notting Hill boutique Couverture & The Garbstore.
Midlands
Le Monde Beryl mesh Mary Janes, £395, 32 The Guild; Autry Medalist trainers, £170, 32 The Guild; Flat bow pump, £295, Bowhill & Elliott
“It’s all about the Mary Jane for us,” says Zoie Walker of 32 The Guild in Northampton. “Our customer is both fashion and comfort led and this trend ticks all of the boxes and isn’t going anywhere soon. Le Monde Beryl’s mesh style is so cute and often bought in both colours when a customer has a fresh pedi as it is shown off through the mesh upper.”
The boutique also has a waiting list for the 1980s-inspired Autry monochrome Medalist trainer. “Everyone wants it,” Walker says.
Over in Norwich, a different kind of fancy flat is selling well: “The flat bow pump in teal velvet has just launched and is proving popular,” says Lucia Debieux of Bowhill & Elliott.
“We get a lot of requests for something both feminine but flat that will work for weddings, black-tie, dinner parties and so on. Comfort is key!”
South-East
Both The Dressing Room in St Albans and Bod & Ted in Tunbridge Wells say that Shoe the Bear’s Maya Mary Jane is flying out of stores, while Collen & Clare in Southwold have found Esska’s T-bar platform sandals to be a customer favourite. “It’s not an understatement to say that every team member has at least one pair and I think many of our customers are building quite the collection,” says managing director Vanessa Collen.
Castaner espadrilles have been a strong seller at Number Six in Chelmsford for the past five years. “Sales of the Carina wedge went through the roof after the Princess of Wales debuted hers in 2019, and [she has worn them] to many public engagements since,” says the retailer’s head of womenswear, Katy Arain. Number Six customers also love colourful, well-priced trainers by Hoff.
Warm weather is very much on shoppers’ minds in the south-east, with sales of Woden’s Line sandals proving strong at The Dressing Room, Ancient Greek Sandals at Bod & Ted, and Freedom sliders at Number Six, while LK Bennett says its mules are most popular in the east Midlands and south-east.
South-West
Winchester’s Sass & Edge reports that its Donna Lei raffia flatforms are proving an early summer hit. “They give a bit of height and are super comfortable,” says the boutique’s Ali Henderson. “Our metallic Berg Wash boots, also from Donna Lei, have been a bestseller for a few seasons now, they fly out as soon as we restock them.”
Trainers are the main event in the south-west otherwise. At Maze in Bristol, Novesta trainers, of all colourways and styles, are a hit, while John Lewis shoe sales in the region tell much the same story. Poole loves a flat for ultimate comfort with the top performing shoes being Ugg clog sandals and Gola Grandslam trainers, according to John Lewis’s research. In its Southampton store, Gabor’s pink suede flatform trainers are one of the top favourites.
Northern England
While we’d never suggest that those in the north-east are the same as those in the north-west, shoe buying habits are pretty similar – and classic styles rule: black court shoes are the most popular buy at LK Bennett and Phase Eight across the north of England, as well as John Lewis, where Whistles’s suede Corie court is a favourite.
Shoes with bows sell best in Sheffield, according to Phase Eight, while LK Bennett also enjoys strong sales of espadrilles in northern stores, where there is a “much higher purchase rate than in the south”.
Tastes are more traditional with casual footwear too: Wild & Westbrooke in York can’t keep Holland Cooper’s Chelsea Court trainers in stock. “One lady bought the navy and wore them out of the shop and came back a few hours later to buy the other two colours because they were so comfortable,” says managing director Laura Stirk. “We are struggling to get deliveries in quick enough.”
Le Chameau wellies are also a reliable seller; “definitely a sign of how much rain we have”, as well as driving shoes by Fairfax & Favor.
Scotland
“With our cobbled streets, hilly landscape and changeable weather, Edinburgh fashion is inevitably tied to functionality,” says Cat Eles, store manager of Frontiers Woman, which does steady trade in trainers by Karhu and Flower Mountain. She says the attitude is best summed up by one customer who said, “Life’s too short, get the yellow trainers.”
We see this factor playing out in data from LK Bennett too; its bestsellers in Scotland are block-heeled courts – much easier to walk in than stilettos.
At Epitome in Edinburgh, it is a minimal moccasin style shoe by French brand Kleman that is a consistent bestseller. “We once had a customer visit our shop to purchase a pair of Kleman Padrors for her daughter as a gift. She loved seeing them on her daughter so much that she came back the following week to purchase a pair for herself,” says Freya Aitken-Scott, the boutique’s sales and marketing assistant. Birkenstock Boston and Arizona styles are also strong sellers at Epitome. “It got to a point last year when we had a waiting list for the restock.”
Wales
There’s no compromising in Wales, where women expect both height and comfort from their special occasion footwear. At Kiti Cymru, a boutique in Cardiff, Esska shoes fulfil these expectations. “Even our customers who are averse to heels find them exceptionally comfortable and easy to wear,” says founder Gwenno Davies. “The red ones are particularly beautiful and are having a moment this season.”
“Our 0’105 sneakers this season have been really popular,” Davies adds. “They are a cool twist on that off-duty look but with colour which our customer loves.”
Sales of slingbacks at LK Bennett were three times higher in Wales than any other region, while Dune’s snake-print block heels were bestsellers at John Lewis in Cardiff.
Northern Ireland
High-fashion ballet trainers – sleek-looking kicks with the sloped shape of a ballet slipper – are the most popular buys at Envoy of Belfast. “Our bestselling styles for SS24 have been 70s marathon sneakers by Dries Van Noten, both green and tan,” says the store’s Tilly Muldrew. “[Also selling well are] overdyed sneakers from Comme des Garçons x Spalwart in all three colourways.”
LK Bennett notes that sandals sell especially well in Northern Ireland too.
