Boat shoes: Sales finally climbing in the US, but local suppliers say there’s no uptick here

 Last year saw endless think pieces from fashion writers declaring that boat shoes are ‘officially back’ on trend, The oft-polarizing shoe first appeared on the fashion scene at Miu Miu’s spring 2024 runway show and was quickly seen in other designer collections from JW Anderson, The Row, Burberry, Valentino, Prada, Bottega Veneta, Bally, Jacquemus and Loewe in leather, suede, and canvas styles.

Plus, a fresh crop of releases from other more affordable brands like Sperry, Timberland, L.L. Bean, Paraboot, Cole Haan, Sebago and more labels further cemented the trend in the fashion universe.

But at the time of its initial hype in early 2024, the hard data wasn’t there to prove that boat shoes were actually catching on outside of the fashion crowd – that’s until now.

Indeed, according to new sales figures from retail research firm Circana, boat shoe sales are just now seeing an increase, albeit a fraction of where the category once was in the 2010s.

‘For the first time in about 10 years, the boat shoe category grew in the first quarter of 2025, with sales up 24 percent versus this time last year,’ Beth Goldstein, footwear and accessories advisor at Circana, told FN. ‘Volume-wise, [boat shoe sales] are still very small – its share has less than 1 percent of the overall fashion category.’

Goldstein said that the data, which comes from Circana’s Retail Tracking Service and excludes brands’ direct-to-consumer sales, is still ‘well below’ historical levels. ‘In my estimation, first-quarter dollars spent were about 80 percent below peak, which was in the mid-2010’s.’
The company also found that the largest share of overall boat shoe purchases is coming from men’s styles, but performance was stronger in women’s shoes. This is a result of new fashion interpretations which essentially put them in the same consideration set as flats and ballerinas, two segments that have been doing well in women’s footwear, the executive noted.

“While boat shoes have historically been more of a spring/summer silhouette, they are more seasonless than a sandal or a boot, which is a positive as versatility remains important to consumers,” Goldstein added.

When it comes to how boat shoe sales are performing at luxury retailers, FN found that most are seeing an increase in consumer interest in the category this spring.

At popular fashion e-commerce retailer Ssense, vice president of menswear buying Freddy Barassi told FN that the company has always had a “great response” to boat shoes. “However, this season we definitely saw a spike in demand across a range of brands from Auralee to Sebago,” Barassi said.

Over at Nordstrom, men’s fashion director Jian DeLeon noted that the boat shoe trend is “still in its early stages” with mainstream customers but the company has seen some traction in sales with its recent partnership with Sperry.
“We’ve really only scratched the surface of this trend,” DeLeon said. “In menswear, trends don’t always come and go each season—some items, like the boat shoe, take a few months for customers to become familiar enough with the product to feel confident trying it for themselves.”

Sophie Jordan, menswear buying director at Mytheresa, noted that their customer is “responding to the trend” but it’s at a smaller level compared to the hype of the trend. “Where it is working better for us, is in a less literal take on the boat shoe, so they are also city appropriate versions rather than purely vacation,” Jordan added.

Alistair Watt, Bresan Footwear (Pty) Ltd

Howick, KZN, SA – Boat shoes have long been a staple in our product lineup, and their production aligns well with our factory capabilities. However, we've seen a steady decline in sales volume in recent years, and they now make up only a small fraction of our overall footwear sales.
Despite our optimism, the current market experience and recent sales data is not showing any signs of renewed interest or uptick in this area. While we’re hopeful that the trend highlighted in the article signals a genuine resurgence, we’ve yet to see this materialize on the ground.

Voden Wearne, Hopewell Footwear (Pty) Ltd

Durban, KZN, SA - We haven’t seen an upsurge in the boat shoe from our side at all, even on new developments, SA is normally 1-2 years behind high fashion, but there hasn’t been any excitement from any of our clients on this styling yet. If it does happen, we will let you know.

Jamal Bux, Portside Footwear (Pty) Ltd
Durban, KZN, SA – Unfortunately, we have not seen any of this trend impacting our sales for now. The market is driven by price and value more than trends. But we are positive, and our developments are always ongoing.