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The “super shoe” has been a dominant topic in run market conversations in recent years, and leading brands showcasing 2024 footwear at The Running Event (TRE) proved the best has yet to come.
Last week at TRE, the annual trade show held in Austin, Texas, seemingly every company competing in the category of run revealed their latest “super shoe,” which are models replete with technology that brands claim can help improve performance.
For instance, Puma offered a look at the Fast-R Nitro Elite 2, a shoe the brand believes is the most propulsive shoe on the market, which arrives in February. The highlight of the shoe, which will retail for $260, is a PowerPlate that extends beyond the toe of the shoe, allowing the runner to run with longer and more powerful steps.
Also, New Balance revealed its FuelCell SuperComp Pacer v2, a race-ready shoe with Pebax foam midsoles (delivered in an eye-catching geometry), carbon fiber plates and sock-like uppers. It will retail for $200 when it arrives in July.
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And Nike had its Alphafly 3 on display. The shoe, which was worn by runner Kelvin Kiptum during the 2023 Chicago Marathon in October, is 15 percent lighter than its predecessor and was built with more stability and comfort in mind. Nike will release the shoe in January.
Industry insiders widely agree that the “super shoe” movement began in October 2019, when marathoner Eliud Kipchoge broke the 2-hour marathon distance barrier in the Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Next%. From that moment, major players in the hypercompetitive category delivered shoes engineered to make runners faster — and it has made this year’s marathon season even more exciting than usual.
In September, Tigist Assefa broke the women’s world record at the Berlin Marathon with a time of 2:11:53 in the Adizero Adios Pro Evo 1. And in October, Kiptum set a men’s world record with a time of 2:00:35 at the 2023 Chicago Marathon in the aforementioned Nike Alphafly 3.
Specialty run retailers told FN that super shoes are a crucial element of their businesses, though they said the pace of new releases has slowed.
“We love super shoes. We love being pinnacle performance footwear,” said Dan Fitzgerald, co-owner of Heartbreak Hill Running Co. in Boston and Chicago. “There are fewer super shoes in the marketplace, but the ones that are crushing it are crushing it. In race season, performance racers pop off. They’re huge. It’s an incredibly important part of our business.”
Despite their importance, will consumers pay? Retailers are divided.
“Our business focuses on athletes. Fast athletes, slow athletes, new and experienced athletes,” Fitzgerald said. “We have national coaching initiatives for major marathons, we activate and energize the collegiate and high markets. We apply real, high-level training in sessions for everyday athletes all year in our hub cities of Chicago and Boston. As a result, we cultivate relationships and trust with the community looking for this product. We’ve sold it well, and will continue to sell it well.”
They’re of less importance, however, to Palmetto Running Co. in South Carolina, which was named 2023 Store of the Year at TRE.
“While super shoes and super trainers have certainly made their mark on our industry, and I do believe they have rightfully found a place on many run specialty retailers walls throughout the country, our specific customer base here at PRC has taken a little longer to adopt to this new category,” said Christian Fyfe, co-owner of Palmetto Running Co. “While the higher price point of these models may be playing a small role, our core customer is really more of an everyday runner or active lifestyle person and these super shoes currently appeal more to advanced and elite level runners.”
And does it make sense for all brands in the sport to invest heavily in a super shoe? Fitzgerald doesn’t think so. “A brand needs to look at itself, its bottom line and decide where they can pour resources and do so authentically. Does your brand have racing heritage? Can you take the halo effect of a top-tier runner and turn that into actual business?” he said.
Bekah Metzdorff, co-owner of Mill City Running and Saint City Running in Minnesota, explained there are multiple benefits to developing a super shoe, as they serve as a laboratory for brands to experiment with new technologies and learn about what people want and what performs best. “Eventually, a lot that tech finds its way into the everyday trainers,” she said.
Industry analysts, too, believe brands could benefit from an increased focus on innovation. For instance, Williams Trading analyst Sam Poser said in a late-June note that Nike needs to be more creative.
Nike has addressed its focus on innovation when it comes to run in the company’s most recent reported quarters. Nike CEO and president John Donahoe, for instance, said on its fiscal Q4 2023 earnings call in June that its focus on innovation will be its advantage in running, and it plans to reveal new footwear products ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Also, the exec said Nike has undergone a “recent reset” and is now prioritizing the needs of everyday runners.
During its Q1 2024 earnings call in September, Donahoe named several silhouettes that the brand is bullish on, which included several aimed at the everyday runner. The models Donahoe named included the Invincible 3, the Infinity RN 4 and the Motiva, which are available now, as well as the upcoming Pegasus 41. Also, the exec said Nike will have a strong focus on its innovations in Air, both in performance and lifestyle, with the 10th anniversary of Air Max Day on March 26, 2024, and the Paris Olympics.
