Why the Telegraph's fashion editors are finally buying their shoes from M&S
‘Ooh, have you seen M&S’s take on The Row’s white sandals?’ said Krissy Turner, The Telegraph’s Shopping Editor in one of our meetings last week.
Most of us hadn’t because, to put it bluntly, M&S isn’t on our priority list of shoe sources. In the past, there’s often been something wrong with its shoes. Clunky seams, cheap finishes… even when its ready-to-wear is peppered with gems, M&S shoes have a fusty, desiccated cloud hanging over them, not helped by the fusty, desiccated displays in store.
One upside of the lockdowns however, is that most of us are still shopping online, so at least the fusty part of the experience is ameliorated – not that the website couldn’t be improved, but it’s better than some of the dusty corners that house M&S shoes in their shops.
And Krissy’s right. This season, while you still have to dodge some uninspiringly frumpy mishaps in its footwear, there are some excellent styles at value for money prices. Autograph particularly has soft, pliable leathers and a number of minimalist styles – no tacky bling to drop off and plenty of focus on proportions. I like their chisel toe flat pumps which are reminiscent of Jil Sander and a great way to wean yourself off trainers occasionally. I also like their quilted sling backs, which nod to Bottega Veneta and offer a more contemporary take on the pointed toe kitten heel.
This is quite unorthodox if you’ve always believed that expensive shoes maketh the outfit. M&S is turning this on its head. Perhaps not before time, because while some – although not all – expensive shoes are gorgeously made and lovely to behold, many are so delicate they get destroyed the first time you set foot on an uneven pavement.
The fact is, it can make more sense to spend a bit more on your outfit (ensuring for instance you get something in a decent fabric) and buy cheaper but expensive looking shoes.
Quilted slingbacks, £45, Kitten heel sandals, £49.50, Leather open toe wedges, £69, Leather slingbacks, £65, Leather mules, £39.50, Leather footbed sandals, £22.50, Suede wedges, £65, all Marks & Spencer
Other M&S classics include their co-respondent Chanel-esque block-heeled slingbacks and a beige mule (also in cream and black). Mules, you may have noticed, are everywhere this season, and not always practical. I once lost one half of a pair to the Thames while boarding a party boat there. That will teach me.
But M&S’s mules stay attached to the foot more than most, so if you must mule, I’d recommend a pair. Also, if you haven’t yet had the Insolia experience, you need to. This is the patented padding they put at the front part of the sole and it makes a huge difference, especially if you’ve lost the natural fat padding under the balls of your feet. It’s like having one of those gel pads (which I’ve never found to stay in place) embedded into the shoe.
Heaven only knows why designers don’t use a similar technology in their very expensive footwear. But at the top end of the shoe market, comfort is often the word that dare not speak its name. The same is true of walkability. Bottega Veneta’s high heeled padded mules (the ones that inspired M&S’s and countless other high street versions) are, according to those that splashed out the £600 on them, “a sitting” shoe.
I don’t know about you, but over the past year, one of the many lessons I’ve absorbed is never to put up again with uncomfortable shoes, shoes that have such pointy toes they get wrecked the first time you wear them, or shoes with heels that get decimated in escalators. Shoes should bring pleasure not pain. How’s that for radical?
Lisa Armstrong's column appears each Saturday in The Saturday Telegraph and is published online every Saturday at 6am on Telegraph Fashion.
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