Six of the hottest products in Q2 of 2025 were shoes, according to Lyst’s Index. A mix of nostalgic, fuctional, and unconventional footwear captured consumer interest. Everything from Birkenstock sandals and Crocs to Vibram FiveFinger shoes and wedge sneakers were at the forefront of 2025.
What does all that mean for retailers going into 2026? Step into the future with us as we explore the dynamic landscape of the footwear industry.
We’ve put together a list backed by foot traffic data to show you the ones to watch. These brands deserve your attention in 2026.
To see how well your brand and competitors did in 2025, book a call to get a demo.
Top footwear brands to watch in 2026
- Birkenstock
- Shoe Station
- Sperry
- Rothy’s
- Shoe Palace
- Boot Barn
- AKIRA
- Cavender’s
- Finish Line
- Kurt Grieger
1. Birkenstock
- Visits: increased by 34.09% year on year.
- Tariff mitigation strategy and the “ugly shoe” trend of summer 2025
Birkenstock expanded its stores across America as well as globally in 2025. In April, the company opened its tenth retail store, located in Nashville. These new stores definitely contributed to Birkenstock’s rapid growth in footfall, but there are a few other factors too!
Tariff strategy
The company produces 95% of its footwear in its own factories located in Germany. Their CEO, Oliver Reichert, has confidently stated that they are “well-prepared to handle the effects” of the new 15% US import tariffs on items brought in from the EU. The brand’s strategy of price hikes in 2025 did work in the short term, but now the brand is looked at a more complex pricing adjustment by reviewing prices each season and adjusting them style.
“But this naturally takes time,” CFO Krolo told Retail Dive. “In addition, our growing share of business in [Asia-Pacific region] will, for the longer term, reduce our exposure to the U.S. dollar and to U.S. tariffs regime.”
“Ugly shoe” trend
Birkenstock benefitted from the “ugly shoe” trend that peaked in the summer of 2025, but has continued in the months afterwards, where fashion forward customers looked for shoes that weren’t conventionally stylish.
Although known for comofrtable sandals, Birkenstock knows when to make a moment to keep its brand at the forefront of consumer interest. Birkenstock took its first step in 2026 in bridal wear and went viral in the fashion world for its unique collaboration with New York-based bridal label Daniel Frankel.
2. Shoe Station
- Consolidating stores under a new banner
- Shoe Station posted a 5.3 percent increase in net sales in Q3 2025
Shoe Station has been quickly consolidating Shoe Carnival stores into the new Shoe Station Group brand, putting it near the top of our list for its business strategy going into 2026.
“The Board of Directors’ decision to approve the corporate name change to Shoe Station Group reflects our confidence in this banner’s potential and establishes our foundation for becoming the nation’s leading family footwear retailer,” said Mark Worden, President and Chief Executive Officer.
Consolidating its stores and operations under one banner is set to help with efficiency. Shoe Station estimates anapproximate $20 million in annual cost savings by the end of fiscal 2027.
3. Sperry
- Visits: 26.85%
- Smart collaborations to take advantage of trends
- Boat shoe craze
Boat shoes were part of the “ugly shoe” trend during 2025 and retailers like Sperry, Timberland and Miu Miu all saw a boost from it. Sperry had a few collaborations during the year–including with Aritzia to create personalized boat shoes, and Colbo, both of which gained attention on socials, chiefly on Tik Tok. These efforts resulted in an increase in visits of 26.85% year on year.
@mark_boutilier Am I officially a boat shoe boy?🤔 #boatshoes #summershoes #summerstyle @Sperry ♬ Bossa Nova jazz that seems to fit in a cafe(1433079) – TAKANORI ONDA
4. Rothy’s
- 22.4% increase in visits year on year
- Emphasis on sustainability
- Smart store selection
Sustainability is a core part of the company’s values. While chasing fashion trends is one way to stay at the forefront, Rothy’s is showing how creating a strong brand image based on vlaues can also work.
At NRF, Rothy’s made it known that the brand values sustainability above all: “Sustainability is our ‘non-negotiable,’” said Dayna Quanbeck, president at Rothy’s. That means continuously creating durable, washable shoes as the assortment grows. “We started with two silhouettes, and we’ve evolved to take on more of the closet with the same product arch.”
Rothy’s has used a store selection process in 2025 to discover locations that benefit the brand most. These stores are then used in the brand’s marketing strategy to ensure the most value. On National Recycling Day, Rothy’s partnered with Hydro Flask on an initiative where customers could get a free reusable water bottle if they were willing to trade in their plastic water bottles.
Something Rothy’s has been hyperfocused on, Quanbeck said, is relooking at “how we are doing storytelling in stores, making sure there’s more branding, more expression.” We did get that sense from the Times Square takeover in July 2025 where Rothy’s partnered with Hope Hydration.
Expect to see smart store selection, exciting collaborations and events all in 2026 from Rothy’s.
5. Shoe Palace
- 19.31% increase in footfall year on year
- Over 160 stores in the US
- Collaborations and exclusive releases to draw in fanbases
Shoe Palace had a ton of collaborations and exclusive releases in 2025. From a Star Wars collection for the fracnhise’s 45th anniversary, to Monopoly with Hasbro, and now in 2026 a collaboration with Adidas to honour Muhmmad Ali, Shoe Palace knows how to capitalize on fandom interest to bring in customers.
Like Rothy’s, the retailer this year focused on smart store selection and using the stores it already had to boost its image. Shoe Palace adopted a new flagship store conceptof “Shoe Palace Nine Three”, paying homage in name and appearance to the year the brand was founded in 1993.
6. Boot Barn
- Visits increased by 16.89% year on year
- Plans to open 70 new stores in 2026
- Sales rose to $703.64 million in Q3
Working towards a total number of stores of 1,200, few retailers are growing quite as much as B oot Barn. Known for its Western-style fashion, Boot Barn updated its guidance recently calling for full-year sales of roughly $2.24 – 2.25 billion; after publishing its new guidance, BOOT stock jumped by 6.1%.
Can Western-style fashion continue to grow? Boot Barn seems to think so, but careful store selection and risk valuation will be key in 2026 for this retailer.
7. Akira
- A 16.47% year-over-year increase in visits
- Strategic store selections by expanding into malls
With operations across 12 states, Chicago-based fashion brand AKIRA witnessed a significant expansion in 2025, leading to more than a 16% boost in foot traffic. The brand strategically entered Green Aces Mall just in time for the bustling Black Friday shopping spree (marking its second location in New York), and also set up shop in Wolfchase Galleria in Memphis, as well as in Arundel Mills. By moving into malls, AKIRA demonstrates its strategic approach to reaching customers and expanding its audience.
Retailers continue to recognize the influence of physical stores, particularly within malls, for brands like AKIRA. To watch the top brands growing in 2026, we’ll be keeping an eye on AKIRA.
8. Cavender’s
- 13.29% increase in visits year on year
- Cowboy-core apparel and footwear
Cavender’s has been selling Western wear for 60 years, but Cowboy-core fashion stole the show in 2025 with retailers like Cavender and Boot Barn seeing an uptick in visits of over 10% due to increased consumer interest in the style. Even though Cowboy-Core fashion has grown in the past few years, interest doesn’t seem to be slowing down with cowboy boots still on-trend at Couture Fashion Week in Paris in early 2026.
Cavender’s is set to benefit greatly from the cowboy trend and the retailer has already shown signs of taking full advantage of it, with news plans announced to open a new store in Edinburg, Texas, investing $5 million in the new location alone.
9. Finish Line
- 12.42% increase in visits year on year
- Many stores located in shoppiung malls
Bought by JD Sports back in 2018, Finish Line is an athletic footwear retailer with many stores in shopping malls across the country. While JD Sport stores themselves have almost double year on year, other subsidiaries haven’t quite seen the same foot traffic, and Finish Line is in a unique position to benefit from growing interest in malls.
Shopping malls were one of the notable trends in NRF 2026, due to the growing rise of making the mall a fuller experience for consumers, and pop-up events. Should this prediction of shopping malls being in a better position in 2026 than before holds out to be true, then Finish Line has one of the best starting points.
10. Kurt Geiger
- Visits increased by 12.4% year on year
- A British footwear and acessary brand rapidily growing in the NA market
- Opened four standalone stores in 2025, more to come in 2026
2025 wasn’t all smooth sailing for British footwear and acessary retailer Kurt Geiger. The brand warned of the impact of US tariffs in late 2025, after reporting a 10% net turnover. However, turnover and profit growth was helped by a strong North American market. There, Kurt Geiger owns its American subsidiary and has been grew its number of stores steadily throughout 2025.
That included four stores before 2025 opened, with two more to come at the very least, including the brand’s first outlet store. Rising celebrity and influencer interest has skyrocketed this brand into the American sphere.
How to follow footwear retail trends in 2026
Before a footwear competitor’s quarterly report releases, you can already have a good idea of performance by looking at foot traffic data and spend insights.
Leverage data to benchmark expectations of your own stores, get an idea of overall market performance, and aid in store selection so you can take the best step forward in 2026.
To see how well your brand and competitors did in 2025, book a call to get a demo.