Shoes are present in each milestone of many people’s lives and follow their owners wherever they go. From new sneakers welcoming the start of middle school to high heels for attending high school prom, shoes are a part of every moment.

Chemistry teacher Alan Tan’s passion for shoes started as a child due to his love for basketball. He appreciated the support and cushioning basketball shoes gave him, and they became essential for his play.

“I used to get basketball shoes because I played a lot of basketball,” Tan said. “I wanted something light, but I also wanted something with good ankle support so that I don’t sprain my ankle, or injure myself.”

An individual’s fashion sense or preference in shoes can be influenced by the people around them and their surroundings. Junior Mia Garcia Dubon took an interest in athletic shoes, following in her brother’s footsteps.

“My brother is very into style, and I get everything from him. I get my music from him, my style,” Dubon said. “Just seeing how he’s always out in Jordans, Nikes and Adidas, I just got inspiration from him.”

Senior Amya Smith started her shoe journey with a pair of Nike’s due to her father’s influence.

“I think my dad started my passion for shoes. He’s a big shoe fan,” Smith said. “He definitely started me out on Nike, even though that’s not what I grew up to like the most. That’s definitely where I started.”

When shopping for shoes, people may need to weigh the benefits between a trendy shoe that is uncomfortable, or a shoe that has an appearance that is not as nice but is comfortable. Some popular shoes today are known to be hard to break in and can be painful for the first few wears.

Despite the lack of comfort, Dubon prefers to have shoes that suit her taste.

“I always look for style way more than comfort,” Dubon said. “The first time I got my Jordans, my feet hurt for one straight week because of trying to break into them, but I didn’t care because I just loved how they looked.”

Smith, however, found that other students seem to prefer comfort rather than following a trend.

“I think definitely in our school and other schools in America, the focus on shoes has been on comfort,” Smith said. “When it comes with shoes and style, I think comfort is the first thing I see when I look around.”

The fashion industry continues to produce new shoe designs every year, yet many students choose to wear vintage shoes. Tan has recognized a pattern of shoes from his childhood becoming popular again.

“All the things that were old have come back around again. Sambas are big now, and I used to wear Sambas in college and in high school,” Tan said. “Air Force 1s were big maybe a couple years ago, and I used to wear those in middle school.”

One of the various new qualities of shoes produced today is the level of comfort provided for the wearer. Stiletto heels were popular in the 1950s and 1960s, expressing femininity. At the same time, they were known to cause severe foot pain and calluses.

Junior Hannah Phillippi made note of how the shoes of today have addressed this issue.

“I definitely believe we have made it less painful for ourselves. I like to pull things from the 1920s or ‘80s, but we used to wear really strict types of shoes that were more uncomfortable, especially for women,” Phillippi said.

When deciding to wear designs of the past or to wear current styles, it is completely up to the individual. Phillippi noted the change in shoe culture and how there are no longer any set rules in place that define what each person will choose to wear.

“It’s a good change, and I’m really glad that there’s a more open circle with what we wear now and there’s no specific line for what we can and cannot wear,” Phillippi said.