This Is a Photo of the Current State of Footwear
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_J.L-A.L_ is likely best known for its high-spec menswear. But its shoes are perhaps even more important in the big picture, as founder Jean-Luc Ambridge Lavelle's footwear designs are indicative of the current state of all of shoes.
Or, at least, a slice of the menswear shoe scene.
As part of _J.L-A.L_'s Spring 2025 collection, the five-year-old label has rolled out a handful of mostly-muted leather shoes that are a million miles away from sneakers.
The resulting designs are a little bit Cav Empt, a little bit Kiko Kostadinov (complimentary) but also indicative of shapes that _J.L-A.L_ has previously dabbled with.
Consider the paneled Tracer Derby and slick Chelsea-style Perlin Boot available on the label's website, so quintessentially menswear that they almost look like outliers amidst the technical _J.L-A.L_ ready-to-wear. But when you consider the designer's clothes more like "engineered" staples retooled with unusual seams and textiles, it all makes a bit more sense.
In the short term, I see this stuff as indicative of the direction that men's shoes are heading towards, at least partially.
There'll never not be room for sneakers, which _J.L-A.L_ itself does dabble with on occasion (typically with HOKA). But a new breed of leather-soled lace-up shoes is becoming more and more common, even from the sportswear giants.
And the ultra-hairy derbies also included in the latest _J.L-A.L_ delivery — which photograph beautifully, BTW — speak to this and more.
Beyond a resurgence of "proper" leather shoes, there's also extant interest in classic hiking-style footwear, especially when it's heavily textured.
A surprising amount of furry suede sneakers are rolling out from big brands as shoes once worn only by hikers are becoming a viable fashion play.
Obviously, _J.L-A.L_ isn't merely cashing in on any one trend here — nor are its derbies "true" hikers per se, though they share DNA with old-school shoes like Merrell's Wilderness — but I do see its inclinations as indicative of a bigger picture also being painted by young labels as disparate as Reese Cooper and Fugazi.
The hairy Tracer Derby seen here is not a monolith as much as it is a weathervane pointing the way the wind is blowing.
Hiking shoes are the new sneakers. Calling it here first.
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