Photographed by Alex Paganelli
Mushroom, pineapple, or olive: for British Vogue’s senior sustainability & features editor Emily Chan, the search for the perfect plant-based day-to-night show is on.
Depending on what time of the year it is, you’re likely to see me in one of two pairs of shoes: in the winter, my ever-faithful ATP Atelier boots; in the summer, my clogs from Ancient Greek Sandals. My loyalty goes beyond pure aesthetics.
As British Vogue’s senior sustainability and features editor, I know that what we wear on our feet often comes with an environmental cost, which is why, when I tried to conquer the age-old challenge of finding a day-to-night shoe that would take me from the office to after-work drinks, that was also sustainable, I found it near impossible.
What are the issues? Well, leather shoes are a fashion norm, but they carry a significant carbon footprint. Add to this equation the impact of deforestation and the fact that the process of turning animal hide into supple leather often involves hazardous chemicals (not only harmful to tannery workers, but local waterways, too). There’s also no getting around the fact that while many consider leather a byproduct of the meat industry, it’s animal-based.
Can we do better? Yes, according to a wave of next-gen, plant-based leather alternatives–made of everything from mushrooms to pineapples and grapes–which are now hitting the market. I put in a call to cult Scandi brand Ganni, which phased out virgin leather from its collections in 2023. “When we started, it felt like we were never going to reach the goal and replace [virgin leather],” creative director Ditte Reffstrup says. She feels positive about the direction of travel. “Today, there’s so much innovation going on.”
For Spring/Summer 2025, Ganni has used Oleatex–a leather alternative made from olive oil waste–in its footwear for the first time, including a weighty lace-up boot and sleek ballerina style. “For me, it’s a better product because it feels luxurious and elevated, and you feel better about yourself wearing a shoe like this because you know that the carbon footprint is less,” Reffstrup says.
I decided to test-drive the Oleatex boots in the Vogue office. It’s true, they’re just as supple as high-end leather. Then there’s the glossy finish. “They look like [real] leather to me!” my colleague says. “They’re not what I expected.” Waterproof? Yep. And while they don’t smell like real leather, they don’t give off those plasticky fumes that a vegan alternative can often do. They have an earthy aroma, as well as being just as, if not more, durable than conventional leather, testing suggests. Plus, it’s already reached commercial scale, a hurdle that many of these innovative new materials still have to overcome.
Ganni, of course, is not the only label gravitating toward vegan alternatives. A growing number of designers, led by longtime animal rights advocate Stella McCartney, who has never used leather in her collections, are making headway. Take New York-based label Aera, which was cofounded by CEO Tina Bhojwani in 2019 and counts the likes of Katie Holmes and Kristen Stewart among its fans, or luxury brand Pīferi, which sadly shuttered in October but nonetheless took vegan footwear to the next level.
The challenge with vegan alternatives? Cutting out the fossilbased plastic, which, while having a lower carbon footprint than leather, comes with a whole set of other problems. Progress is afoot (so to speak). Oleatex, for example, is up to 90 percent bio-based (currently 65 percent, in Ganni’s case). “It’s essential to stop new fossil-based materials from entering the system if the fashion industry is to reduce its emissions and meet climate goals,” says Sarah Needham, Textile Exchange’s senior director of engagement and partnerships. Still, it’s worth remembering that the debate over the use of plastic in vegan shoes isn’t as black and white as is typically framed. Even shoes made from animal leather can be refined using plastic, as well containing plastic components.
The next frontier is recyclability. There’s an inescapable waste issue with our footwear, which is typically made using more than 30 components (on top of the plastic, there’s often foam, rubber and metal). Our shoes are rarely recyclable–or recycled. A sobering reality given approximately 66 million shoes are produced globally every single day.
Naturally, I’ll be wearing my ATP boots and Ancient Greek Sandals clogs until they can no longer be repaired. (The most sustainable shoes are the ones we already own and the next best are second-hand.) Will I be adding a pair of Oleatex boots to my regular rotation in the future? One hundred percent. By then, though, who knows what other new eco materials might have emerged on the scene… That’s what gives me hope. The industry is moving in the right direction, one step at a time.
