Sexes Are Closer Than You Think When It Comes to Shoes
While the stereotype might be that women are obsessed with shoes, that doesn’t necessarily exclude men from the craze as well. Men, more often than not, are just as head-over-heels about footwear as women, if not more. There are multiple documentaries (including “Sneakerheadz” and “Just for Kicks”) on the subject of the frenzy for basketball shoes and how guys will often spend a ridiculous amount of money for a cool pair of kicks.
A study cited by the Washington Post notes that single women spent an average of $1,039 on apparel and services in 2014, with an average $160 a year of that spent on shoes, while guys dropped $817 a year on the same goods with $143 of that devoted to shoes. However, this trend seems to be changing as more fashion-conscious males are showing a bit more care about their footwear.
The popularity of high-profile basketball shoes is nothing new. Every few months it seems as though a highly coveted edition of Air Jordan’s is released and flies off the shelves in a matter of days, sometimes hours. And these things aren’t cheap, an average pair will easily cost you $150 to $200 and Uproxx points out that the new ‘Beach Just Don Air Jordan 2 Retro’ is going to cost a whopping $650! These are the kinds of prices that wouldn’t be out of place for a pair of Jimmy Choos or Christian Louboutins, both of whom, coincidentally, have also released their own hi-top designs. And it isn’t just exclusive sneakers and rare hi-tops, because guys are getting in on designer fashions as well. Frankly, we couldn’t be happier about it.
Another area in which guys generally are more likely to splurge a bit more money is on boots. As noted earlier, with men the tendency to drop more cash on shoes tends to come in making an investment in a season-less pair that can look great and hold up. This is especially evident than when it comes to boots. On their own, boots don’t tend to be cheap and a good pair will easily run you $150, with designer options often going for much more. One look at the myriad boots available from Lyst and you can understand how men are spending more on footwear. With boot styles that run the gamut from Chelseas and Chukkas to lace-up combat styles from the likes of John Varvatos and Yohji Yamamoto, it’s easy to see how men can quickly outspend their “shoe-crazy” counterparts after one or two pairs.
