Material Matters: 2019 Recap

When it comes to sneakers, the technological arms race gets fiercer with each passing year. Looking back on 2019, it appeared brands weren’t attempting to reinvent the wheel: they just strived to make it work better. While 2018 gave us glimpses into the future of future, 2019 got slightly closer to making those visions a reality. For example, after years of development, finally implemented Adapt into other genres, and also took runners on a Joyride.

At the same time, proven textiles like and experienced a welcome resurgence. The implementation of these rugged materials prefaced the revival of off-road runners and hiking-inspired styles from just about every major brand this year.

Let’s take a look back at some of 2019’s most prominent materials.