Rose Rankin

Well hello, Rose Rankin… See ya Stan Smith!

It’s official: we’ve reached peak Stan Smith. Maybe you don’t care — they look great, they’re comfy, and if they’re good enough for Phoebe Philo and Kate Moss, well, who are we to argue with that?

Gold Colt Runner

But if you’ve started to crave something a bit more exciting, something that makes you smile every time you look at your feet, something that’s smart enough to wear to work or down the pub, then we’ve got just the thing.

We’re one of the first UK stockists of Rose Rankin sneakers. You probably haven’t heard of them, but that’s about to change — they’re already popping up in the fashion press, and the retro-inspired designs and luxe fabrics have got where-did-you-get-those-shoes written all over them.

Irish-born Rose has been designing and customising her own trainers for years, before making the decision to create her own line of work-to-weekend trainers. Her bold designs are handmade in Portugal from premium fabrics, mixing prints, colour pops and metallics, with a comfy leather lining to put some spring in your step.

Velvet Colt Runner

We’re stocking three styles for AW15: the Velvet Colt Runner, the Gold Colt Runner, and the Cheetah Simmy Mid-Top. The retro-style runners are made from fuchsia velvet with metallic silver and turquoise leather, or gold camouflage leather with nude mesh and dark green leather accents. The Simmy is a cheetah print pony skin high top (don’t worry, they’re not made from ponies — it’s textured cow hide), trimmed in tan leather with a shimmering silver lining. All three styles have been hopping, skipping and jumping out of the shop — we had a waiting list for weeks before they arrived.

Cheetah Simmy Mid-Top

As well as looking amazing, Rose Rankin’s are great for autumn. They’re snazzy enough to brighten up cold, dark mornings and the chunky sole is good when the weather’s bad. At £169, they’re a bit more spendy than Stan, but we think they’re worth it — and once you’ve tried a pair, we reckon you will too.[CR]