The nasty truth about trainers

Last December, more than 12,000 so-called ‘sneakerheads’ descended onto the Anaheim Convention Center in California for Sneaker Con, the world’s biggest sneaker convention. On shelves and tables, held aloft by eager vendors, thousands of pairs of trainers, including some of the world’s rarest kicks, were on display. “Sneakers represent so much, from a person’s style to what they have been through,” stylist Aleali May, one of only two women to design for the Nike-owned Jordan brand, commented at the time. “The great part about Sneaker Con is that it sees that all these people have something in common – and that starts with our sneakers.” 

Sneaker culture has transformed in the past decade. Tech and innovation, the elevation of sportswear into luxury, high-profile collaborations with the likes of Dior and McQueen and the influence of street culture have combined to turn a basic accessory into something much, much more. Factor in the enthusiastic patronage of cultural heavyweights such as Michael Jordan, Travis Scott and Kanye West, and the trainer is now a bona fide cult item. In fact, it is reputedly West – with the 2015 launch of his iconic Adidas YEEZY line – that really propelled the shoe into the mainstream.

And where culture goes, money follows. In 2018, the global trainers market was valued at approximately $58bn (£45bn), with a forecast of $88bn (£68bn) by 2024. Resale alone is estimated to be about $1bn (£777m). At Sneaker Con, in the heaving Trading Pit, over $1m worth of sneakers can be traded at any given event. In fact, their status as a commodity may play a large part of sneakers’ appeal. “Yeah, you have core sneakerheads who love the history of design,” says Kitty Cowell, a stylist who self-admittedly owns a “silly amount of trainers”. “[But you also have] the modern audience who are driven by hype and money...”

The result is that the modern trainer is a complex entity. From variable height tread to the multi-density mid-sole, from the flex point to the lace lock: each component offers a site for technical and creative wizardry. And possibilities are endless. In February this year, Scott, arguably the preeminent collaborator in the industry, released his take on the SB Dunk, transforming Nike’s skate shoe with a mix of plaid and paisley, braided laces and pink swoosh. On the same day (probably no accident), West launched the Yeezy Boost 350 v2 Earth, a minimalist symphony of browns and olives.

But, as ethical spotlights turn with intent on the fashion industry, footwear is coming under greater scrutiny. And the news isn’t good: trainers leave a heavy – excuse the pun – footprint. More than 23 billion pairs of shoes are made every year, of which a large proportion are trainers; more than 300 million pairs are thrown out in the same time period. Most trainers are made from problematic materials including nylon, synthetic rubber and plastic. They are shaped by energy-intensive processes such as injection moulding, foaming, and heating – and then bound together with environmentally damaging chemical solvents. 

“The footwear industry is at least 10 years behind the rest of fashion in terms of human rights and environmental standards,” says Tansy Hoskins, author of the upcoming book Foot Work: What Your Shoes are Doing to the World. “As a result, every point of production is in crisis. Every day, workers are exposed to toxic chemicals and dangerous materials. The problem is the discrepancy between the marketing and the reality of trainers. They’re often sold as tools that can reconnect us to the natural world, through running or outdoor activities, but they’re actually destroying that world. And because they’re massively trend-based, they’re seen as disposable.”