Exclusive | How These Chunky Running Shoes Became the ‘It’ Sneakers: ‘Every Brand Is Making Their Shoes Look Like Hoka’

Walk down any street in NYC and you’ll see a pair of Hokas on the feet of stylish people.

Once reserved for hitting the pavement, running shoes—with their chunky soles, athletic mesh, and vibrant colors—have become a street style staple, a trendy boardroom accessory, and everything in between.

And the proof is in the pudding: Deckers Brands, which owns the running shoe label, saw a nearly 35% jump in sales for Hokas to $570.9 million, the company reported last month.

Celebrities are partly responsible for the Hoka boom: Harry Styles and Blake Lively have worn the Cubs, while Adam Sandler showed off a pair of electric blue Hokas on the red carpet last year. Even President Joe Biden has been spotted wearing black Hoka Transports, contrasting his suit with sensible sneakers.

“You can spot them on celebrities and athletes, which is always a boon for any fashion piece,” Wardrobe Whisperer stylist Jessica Cadmus told The Post, adding that nearly a third of her style Hokas clientele is an everyday shoe.

“Say what you will about them, Hokas are very comfortable,” she said of the sneakers, which were first integrated into weekend outfits but slowly began to make their way into weekday outfits. She said most of her clients in New York originally bought them for exercise, but moved to a daily basis as their daily routines require long walks.

“The large sole is Hoka’s trademark and although visually alarming at first, it tends to grow on you; especially because they actually propel you forward when you walk,” she said. “It’s a unique experience and makes you want to wear them again and again.”

Coupled with the overwhelming growth of friendly clothing post-pandemic, it’s the “perfect storm” for the brand’s success, Cadmus added.

“There’s also a sense of considered design when you look at them, which I think makes them more attractive,” she said.

Convenience is a big plus, but Hoka’s explosion can also be attributed to the endless colors. Content creator, model and avid runner Renée Noe boasts a colorful shoe wardrobe full of Hokas, estimating that she owns around 35 pairs in all different shades.

“I wear them every day. I mean, even if I’m going to custom, they’re shoes I’m going to wear,” Noe, 23, of California, told The Post, adding that she even wore her Hoka hiking boots to Coachella a year.

“No one knows how to do it like Hoka,” she added.

In fact, Hoka — which has partnered with fashion retailers beloved by Gen Z like Reformation and Free People — is the “most sought-after brand” by customers of Elite Feet, a specialty shoe store in Delaware, said Joy Hunt, who is a co-owner. business with her husband Jason.

“What has contributed to the rise in popularity is this understanding that it’s not just runners and walkers who need support,” Joy told The Post. “Everyone can really benefit from cushioning and support, especially as we get older and spend more time on our feet.”

That’s exactly what Colin Ingram, the brand’s vice president of global products, realized after wearing them.

“I remember hitting my feet on the pavement and not feeling anything,” he told the Wall Street Journal. “I was like, OK, there’s something to this. It’s not just a crazy looking shoe. There’s actually a benefit to that.”

The shoe brand’s ability to deliver form and function, experts say, is the reason for its solid foundation. When the California-based brand was acquired more than a decade ago, it brought in about $3 million in annual sales. By the end of fiscal year 2022, that number was $1.4 billion.

But to be embraced by the fashion pack – many of whom would never have dared show off a pair of running shoes a decade ago – is the most shocking thing.

“When we first started almost nine years ago, people were coming in and they wanted fashion, fashion, fashion, no matter what,” Elite Feet co-owner Jason Hunt told The Post, explaining that shoe brands like Hoka are now producing the old ones. -Ugly ugly shoes “sleeker” and “sexier” without sacrificing comfort and appeal to customers.

“Now people are coming to us and they understand that … you get the function first and then you can style it.”

Lexie Firment, 24, estimates she’s spent roughly $3,000 over the past three years growing her collection of brightly colored Hokas, her closet filled with at least a dozen pairs.

“I honestly wear them every day,” the avid runner and content creator, who is based in South Carolina, told The Post.

“We were all trying to match our outfits and look good while running, instead of just wearing an old T-shirt and shorts,” she said, crediting the shoe as so “chic” that she wears a pair of any clothing.

She also works at a local sports shop – Palmetto Running Company – where it’s an “easy sell” on the shoes because of how much she adores them. Not to mention, Hokas are “probably one of our best-selling shoes,” she noted.

And Hoka is giving other shoe brands a run for their money. Competitors are looking to trends when designing their shoes bigger and bigger, but also lighter, Jason said.

In a way, he added, they are trying to “give Hoka Hoka”.

“If you’re an industry leader, people do what you do. No one follows a bad trend,” he said. “Everybody, every brand is making their shoes look like Hoka.”