The Boom of the Birkenstock

Birkenstock is a brand that we absolutely love and adore, and it's safe to say that Cape Town feels the exact same way. No matter your age, dress sense or bank balance, if you are from the Mother City, you are bound to own a pair. Interestingly enough, the Birkenstock was not always such a fan favourite, but was rather labelled as super unfashionable when first released into the world. This was back in Germany, in the 1700’s (more than 200 years ago!).

The shoe was first designed to offer flexible arch support, and health stores were the only businesses who were interested in selling them. Fast forward to centuries later, and it is a completely different picture.

Many say that the recent boom of the Birkenstock happened because of the change in culture that was forced by the pandemic. Not only did we all spend days-on-end ‘just chilling’ at home (and baking banana bread), but this lifestyle also meant that we barely had the need to ever get ‘dressed up’. With nowhere to go, what was the point? *In swings the Birkenstock* - shoes that are so comfortable, it’s likely that at some point, you’ll even forget that you’re wearing them.

Birkenstock has stood by its values for years and years in making a shoe that is functional and durable. The brand has even turned down collaboration requests from some of the world’s grandest fashion labels, to stick to this idea, and it is all finally paying off.

All in all, the pandemic has rekindled our love for comfort to such an extent, that fashion and style has taken a bit of a back seat, or at least, comfort is the new king. This trend has played into the hands of Birkenstock, who is having its most successful period of sales since the beginning of its existence. It’s worth pointing out that along with the strong desire for comfort, also came the rise of the infamous athleisure wear, but that is a story for another day…