As a vegetarian household, we avoid purchasing leather goods. This is fairly easily achieved on most items- handbags, belts, gloves- all are available in a variety of non-leather materials. But be watchful of decorative parts- these are sometimes leather or suede.
Vegan shoes are a bit trickier, but still something we manage to acquire at a reasonable cost. Many lower priced shoes look like leather, but are really synthetic. Take a moment to look at the inside label. Shoes are pretty clearly labeled with their materials. Look for “all man-made materials” on the tag or stamped inside of the shoe.
We’ve had good luck shopping for shoes at Payless, Target and Famous Footwear. These chains feature a variety of inexpensive, non-leather shoes. Even specialty shoes- like slip-resistant soles- can be found leather free!
Tip: You can look for shoes on the Payless website and have them shipped for free to your nearest Payless store. But their shipment takes a year and a day to arrive, so allow for plenty of time!
Cool brands like Dansko, Rocketdog, Dr.Martens, Mossimo and more offer shoes made without leather. Don’t think you need to wear leather, or spend lots bucks, in order to have fun and funky shoes!