Why Shoes Keep Shrinking: Flip-Flops, Flats and Slim Sneakers

When, last year, Nic Byrom, creative director of OOTD, an Instagram account documenting New York street style, first began sharing photos of city dwellers wearing barely-there jellies, mesh shoes and flip-flops, the comments were predominantly filled with concern and even revulsion.

“Those shoes in NYC … Let’s see her feet when she got home,” someone wrote last June, referencing what had long been a de facto rule on city streets: open-toed, exposed or thin shoes are too close to the street.

Now, however, the tone has changed. Shrunken sandals and barely-there flats have dominated the trend cycle this summer — and the comments have been more positive, said Byrom.

What’s happening on the street is indicative of a larger shift happening across categories and price points: Shoes seem to just keep shrinking.

More pared-back styles including ballet flats, teeny T-strap sandals and naked mesh slippers are. The simple flip-flop has majorly made a comeback; The Row’s rubber Dune Sandal was Lyst’s hottest product of the second quarter. Sneakers, too, have slimmed down, with styles like Adidas’ Taekwondo, Puma’s Speedcat and Prada’s Collapse are all growing in popularity. Even toes are having a moment: interest in Vibram’s Five Finger shoe — once reserved for niche outdoorists and Demna’s heeled boot provocations at Balenciaga — is gaining steam in fashion circles. It took the number five spot on the Lyst Index.

At the same time, US and UK retailer sell-outs of sandals described as “chunky” and “platform” are down 27 percent; while arrivals of sneakers with the same description are down 37 percent year-over-year, respectively, said retail analytics firm Edited’s footwear specialist Katharine Carter.

“It feels new and fresh and that’s what the industry needs,” said Beth Goldstein, footwear analyst at intelligence company Circana.

While flip-flops’ moment in the sun is sure to fade as autumn arrives, the growing embrace of the minimalist look is set to continue into the fall. Slim loafers, mules, Mary Janes and slick, fitted boots (seen on the Fall 2025 runways at Miu Miu, Toteme, Prada and more) are all expected to bubble up. Though sleek shapes are hardly the only style in the mix: slouchy, crumpled boots, have been seen at Louis Vuitton, Ralph Lauren and Isabel Marant, whose 2010s-era wedge sneakers are making a comeback. In an email to BoF, a spokesperson for H&M said chunkier ’80s and ’90s style footwear would be a theme for fall.

Footwear, like any category in fashion, is cyclical, and after years of oversized shoe domination, it’s only natural that the sector is veering in the other direction. But they also make sense in this cultural moment.

“The world is getting so out of hand, we just feel drawn to more essential things that support our comfort, that are breathable and [have] not so much design [and] more functionality, which feels reassuring in uncertain times,” said Nina Christen, design director of shoes at Christian Dior Couture and founder of her namesake line.

Shoes Get Naked

The rise of slimmer, more minimalist shoes, is something of an “an antidote to the ugly, big shoes that have been going on for a long time,” said Christina Martini, co-founder of the Athens-based Ancient Greek Sandals.

The quiet luxury craze that exploded in 2023 — which, despite industry exhaustion with the term, remains an influential force in fashion — is also, in part, to blame. The Row, the ultimate minimalist label, originated many of today’s trending silhouettes, including jellies, flip flops, mesh sandals and barely-there heels.

Today’s low profile, flat sneakers look “cleaner” than formerly dominant dad shoes and Air Force 1s, according to David Aaron Siskin, founder of footwear consultancy Shoe Lab, who works with brands including Margaux and Sabah, known for their ballet flats and slippers. More brands are betting on these sorts of styles to capture consumer interest. Nike, which is in the midst of mounting a turnaround after years of slowing sales, has been spotlighting more low-profile silhouettes, such as the Total90, Air Rift and Astra Ultra in its marketing. Earlier this month, Marc Jacobs — which parent company LVMH is reportedly considering a sale of — released a flat, slim look that earned the brand rare buzz in sneakers circles.

The effect is also being felt in menswear: today’s version of the trending boat shoe is slimmed down from previous iterations, said Goldstein. A$AP Rocky and Bad Bunny have been photographed in ballet flats and Mary Janes this summer, while “Wicked” actor Jonathan Bailey stirred up conversation wearing flip-flops on the red carpet in June.

It helps that there’s just something inherently classic about a minimalist, pared back style, said Christen, who has designed footwear for Loewe, Bottega Veneta and The Row.

In a time when consumers are being more cautious in their spending, they’re more drawn to styles that will be easy to pair with any outfit. When OOTD, for example, coordinates branded street-style shoots with influencers, they tend to show up in more minimalist footwear styles, Byrom said.

Plus, simple sandals, flats and even socks-as-shoes, convey a sense of not trying too hard. The rise of these styles correlate with quiet luxury’s theme of signalling without being loud, as well as rising interest in sleepwear.

“It is dovetailing nicely with trends in fashion, which are pajamas and comfort items being worn outside,” said Maxwell Federbush, co-founder of Brave Pudding, which sells a cashmere sock turned into an everyday bootie that appeared on New York ready-to-wear brand TWP’s Fall 2025 runway. Sarah Fiszel, his co-founder, added that not having to get dressed up has emerged as “the ultimate luxury.”

At the same time, styles like jellies and mesh flats, offer consumers a simple way to incorporate a new or unexpected element into their outfits. The styles’ growth was a slow burn, appealing to more in-the-know shoppers last year before exploding on the mass market in 2025; arrivals of shoes tagged “jelly” are up 280 percent in Spring/Summer 2025 compared to 2024 in US and UK retailers, said Edited’s Carter.

“It’s all over the place in a way I didn’t expect it,” said Byrom. “First came the ballet flats and jelly shoes, then came the flip flops … I’ve been a chunky, platform shoe wearer my whole life, then I got a pair of Sambas.”

Following the Trends

What’s happening in footwear reflects trends in fashion at large. Denim and shoe trends, in particular, have always been closely linked. With baggy jeans and longer shorts more popular today, consumers are gravitating towards slim shoes to balance out their look.

But just as skinny jeans haven’t disappeared now that baggy shapes dominate, naked shoes aren’t the only pairs in demand right now. Young Gen-Zers, in particular, are still into thick-soled loafers and are increasingly pairing knee-high boots with shorts and mini skirts, even in the height of summer. Case in point: Steve Madden’s viral buckled moto-boots (visible on any street corner in downtown New York) are one of its best-selling styles, said Christina Ciglar, chief product officer at Steve Madden. Thick-soled sneakers from Hokas and New Balance are also still popular, and sales of clogs have risen around the same amount as flats, said Goldstein.

As the trend evolves, more brands will bring the two looks together. Next season, Ancient Greek Sandals will add thick soles to some minimalist shoes to appeal to those who like the pared back aesthetic, but want comfort and support. Steve Madden, meanwhile, will look to slim down its thick-soled, strapped Mona and Mayven sandals next season, said Ciglar.

There are reasons for brands to keep pushing slimmed-down styles, especially the face of tariffs, that could pinch margins: “It’s simpler to make less constructive, simpler shoes, and the price points can come down,” said Siskin. (Though that also could mean a brand would have to sell more to hit targets.)

Still, rising prices, the proliferation of dupes and a pinched consumer make it even more important for brands to have compelling, on-trend and innovative products on offer — especially if shoppers are cutting back on purchases overall. Steve Madden, for example, is hedging against consumer shifts by adding louder, dressier and more embellished styles early next year.

“Things that look very different will drive someone to say ‘I’m going to spend my money here.’ Brands are going to need to work hard to innovate and get attention,” said Goldstein.