Skate Footwear F/W 2025 Retail Buyer’s Guide
Skateboard footwear is currently in a strange period. Some brands are excelling, whilst others are barely clinging on, with some being sold and others closing their doors. With the Olympics giving a boost in the popularity of skateboarding, there is strong participation, however, many people are having to limit their spending and operate on tighter budgets as money is becoming tighter for most. Understandably, nothing is getting cheaper, but how are brands catering to the market’s needs?
Market
The skate footwear market is fluctuating, with some brands struggling, whilst others are thriving, but competition is tough. The post-COVID situation plaguing the industry for several years now is subsiding thankfully. Hoursisyours Creative Director, Dennis Martin said “The market is in a bounce back from overstocking and we expect to see a strong year ahead.” Whilst being a small niche, the skate-specific footwear market is still appealing to customers, both in and outside of skateboarding.” Rick Marmolijo, Footwear Designer at Etnies noticed that “There seem to be opportunities in creating lifestyle shoes that can also be skated in.” This is just one way the skate footwear industry can attract a wider audience. Andres Araya, Sales manager EMEA at New Balance Numeric commented on the competition from larger brands, saying “The market is fragmented, with established skate-specific brands competing against lifestyle and sportswear giants.” Alessandro Urso, Sales Director EME/NAM at C1RCA said positively that “The European skate footwear market is experiencing a dynamic and exciting phase. In the EMEA territories, where C1RCA is present in 8 key markets, we are seeing a renewed interest in authentic brands with a deep skateboarding heritage like C1RCA.” Osiris’s Brian Barber said “We’re seeing a major trend where many of the core, original skate shoe companies have been bought, sold, or are under new management. That’s what makes us unique – we’re the last independent, owner-operated original skate shoe company!”
Trends
In terms of market trends, customers desire brands with a history of skateboarding. Another thing that seems to be trending is vintage styles, as Rick from Etnies said: “The current trend at the moment is vintage court-inspired aesthetics.” Alongside this, the search for more retro looks from the younger generation is booming, as Brian Barber, CEO at Osiris Shoes said: “We feel that there is a younger customer that loves the discovery and search for the nostalgic / glory days of skate.”
Price Points
Everything is getting more expensive these days, however, skate shoes remain within a similar price point to last season. The general price range starts at around €80 and goes upwards of €100 for the more technical shoes. Fallen, for example, has their price point shoe “The Bomber vulcanised’ with a price of €79” as Ricky Mazzone, CEO of Fallen said. Newcomers OPUS Footwear is offering an even lower price point, with all of their shoes under €75. New Balance Numeric will have various shoes at the €80, €90 and €100 price points, however as Andres from NB Numeric said: “Additionally, we’re introducing the new Reynolds shoe at €140, which we believe will be a game-changer. It combines high-performance features with a lifestyle-inspired aesthetic.”
Stories & Pro Models
There’s plenty to be excited about in the coming FW season, with some classics reimagined in more weatherproof materials ready for those frosty skates. éS for example, will be releasing the first pro shoe for long-serving Canadian powerhouse TJ Rogers. Alongside this, they will be toughening up their silhouettes as Michael Morey, Footwear Designer & Merchandiser explained: “We have a full-grain leather pack dropping in winter Season for éS which TJ Rogers’ first pro shoe is included in.”
Rick from Etnies said “Skate Classics will be the main focus for FW25. This collection was the definition of the golden era of 90’s skateboarding and consists of The Snake, The Scam, Sal 23 and the re-introduction of the original Locut.” Emerica rounds up the Nidecker siblings’ stories with the introduction of Baker pro-Kevin ‘Spanky’ Long’s latest signature shoe, the KSL III. Michael said, “There’s also a special colourway coming for the Winter season which we are keeping under wraps, but for Fall we have super strong white action leather to lead the launch as well as a really strong navy suede version.” DC will be pushing various pro models including Palace Skateboard’s Lucien Clarke Pro in various colourways, alongside winterised versions of their classic silhouettes. Hoursisyours is keeping things clear with this season’s offerings, as Dennis said “A quality, performance, casual offering for everyone. We’re also releasing the Code V3 Cold by Bryan Herman.” For C1RCA, they’re launching the ‘Metamorphosis project’. Alessandro said: “We collaborated with several international designers, each of whom interpreted one of our iconic models through an assigned colour palette and exclusive graphic design.”
Collection Themes
Interesting things are happening regarding material themes and experiments with new fabrics. Brian from Osiris said: “Themes are incorporating innovative technical materials like Lenticular.” Rick from Etnies spoke of the switch up from the usual earthy FW tones, saying “We are also using some hairy suede in the Sal23 and Barge LS collection to make it a bit more premium.” Similarly, for Emerica and éS, both will be releasing, or rereleasing colour ways for their models, said Michael explained: “Across both brands, we are focused on ensuring a full offering so that there’s something for everyone.[3] For éS, there are a few ways in which we dip into archival colourways on new products and styles which have been working well for us for some time and will excite longtime fans. With Emerica, the palette is a balance between earth tones, core classics, and some new interesting but ultimately wearable colour options.” Hoursisyours are staying true to their nature of sleek, classy shoes, with Dennis from Hours describing their theme as “Lowkey Luxury.”
Events/Projects
With the aforementioned pro models being launched this coming season, it’s bound to generate a lot of focus on the respective brands. DC’s Cédric Bordderie, EMEA Core Marketing Skate & Snow Coordinator announced that “Lucien Clarke’s new colourway launches will come to selected shops and a Skate Deluxe collab launch in spring.” Skate brands are also dipping their toes into the high fashion world, with brands like Vans having shows at the likes of Paris Fashion Week. NB Numeric’s Andres announced, “We are gearing up for Paris Fashion Week and Copenhagen Fashion Week in January 2025, followed by the highly anticipated launch of a new shoe model later in the year.” Alongside events like this, tours are still a thing, with Fallen hitting Europe as Ronnie said “We’re planning to make a trip to the Czech Republic by May/June.” Opus’ Co-Founder Mirko Mangum spoke of an event they’re hyped for: “We’re excited for the ‘www.projectfashionevents.com – would be great to see some old friends from Europe come over to the show, the last show was the closest thing to an ASR show I’ve seen in years.”
Design (Trends)
The general design trends seem to still be looking towards bigger, more retro styles. It also sounds like cupsoles are more in demand right now, but as Michael from Emerica said “Specifically in skate, there’s always going to be a vulcanised shoe loyalist consumer[4] .” Mirko Mangum Co-Founder at Opus said: “One Major trend we see is baggier fits, and with bagger fits come shoes with more Volume or puff.” Allesandro from C1RCA’ spoke about one of the main trends they see being “Technical Functionality and Durability: Consumers are looking for resilient and performance-driven footwear, with soles that guarantee grip and protection.”
Collabs
Some hot collaborations will be coming next season, with Hoursisyours teaming up with Dustin Dollin’s revived PD brand and Heroin Skateboards to name a few. éS will be partnering with Movember – a testicular cancer awareness nonprofit. Michael from éS said, “The partnership came naturally from TJ’s connection to the Movember crew which came about during his journey beating Testicular cancer.” Etnies will also be partnering with the nonprofit Keep a Breast Foundation and Apache Skateboards, as Rick explained: “These will be released in October for Indigenous Peoples’ Day and breast cancer awareness month.”
Sustainability
Considering the current global climate, every brand should be trying to be sustainable in some way. Be it alternative fabrics or recycled materials, brands are getting more and more creative with their efforts. Allesandro from C1RCA said, “We are actively working towards making our collections more sustainable by progressively introducing eco-friendly and vegan-friendly materials.” Mirko from Opus said similarly: “Opus is working on two plant-based fabrics. We hope to have them in the collection for Fall 2025.” Almost every brand in our guide is offering vegan shoes with synthetic materials, which is promising.
Brand Previews
