Speak For Your Feet: 4 International Shoe Brands We Love

We looked down at our feet the other day, and found ourselves staring at the same old, worn out pair of sneakers we’d repeatedly been slapping on every morning for months and months. Frustrated, and looking to improve our shoe game, we started doing some shoe-searching online.

In case you’re also feeling like revamping the bottom drawer of your closet, we put together a list of four of our favourite international shoe brands {we know there are more, and we intentionally left out the well-known big hitters}.

A famous brand of shoes from Finland, Karhu has a host of awesome choices for sneaker hounds. There are a series of specialised running shoes {for men and women} and a comfortable collection of casual footwear.

Our favourites about them are the Albatross Nordic Berries series {comes in deep navy, burgundy, blue and burnt orange} and the Moomin series {comes in aqua and pink}. Gorgeous colours and deep, cushioned insides make these great casual shoes to chill in.

Where: Buy the Albatross Burgundy online here. Buy the Moomin Aqua here.

Price: INR 6,065

We know Vans are quite popular and you probably don’t need us telling you about them, but we love their shoes and felt we had to include them for their fun designs.

Our favourites among them {and there are many!} are the Disney Authentic series. We lucked out when a family member gifted us a pair of the Winnie the Pooh shoes. Comfortably snug on the feet, with the signature Vans white band around the sole, the honey coloured shoes have Pooh in a series of different poses.

If you’re lucky you can also find Donald Duck, Jungle Book and Alice in Wonderlandshoes from the Disney Authentic series.

Where: Buy online here.

Price: INR 3,999

The Amsterdam-based Filling Pieces footwear label is sleek and stylish. Right away we loved their minimalist website and chic designs. If you’re looking for comfort and style, this is the pick for you.

We had a tough time picking a favourite. All the designs were clean, crisp and looked comfortable, but if we had to choose, we’d get the Mountain Cut Degrade Frost shoes. Hand-painted gradient finishing, a thick body, strong sole and great colour tones made it stand out.

They are definitely more expensive than their counterparts, though at least they have free shipping to India.

Where: Buy online here.

Price: INR 18,925

UK shoe barons Fred Perry keep it classy with their selection. Even their sneakers have a certain panache. We browsed through their collection greedily {as we’re sure you will} and finally settled on a pair.

We picked the Spencer Waxed Leather shoe. Classically crisp and framed as a functional tennis shoe, the Spencer is made from shiny, waxy, natural full-grain leather. The shoe looks gorgeous, has a rubber sole, and a padded ankle collar. Looks great, feels great; what else could you ask for?

Where: Buy online here.

Price: INR 7,080