Advantages of Leather Shoes
Leather shoes have many advantages over synthetic leather and textile shoes. For example, they are breathable and stretchy. Of course, there are other advantages as well, which I will explain to you now.
1. The Durability of Leather
Leather shoes are very durable when properly cared for. Thanks to its natural, three-dimensional, continuous fiber structure, leather has very high tear resistance, tear propagation resistance, puncture resistance, and tensile strength. Additionally, leather becomes even more durable when wet. This property benefits leather shoes when they are worn while sweaty or damp.
2. Greater breathability compared to synthetic leather shoes
Leather absorbs sweat while being worn and slowly releases it to the outside. However, with proper care, no water penetrates the interior. This is, of course, ideal for shoes, as it reduces sweaty feet and prevents your feet from getting wet from the outside.
3. Greater elasticity of the leather
Since the foot swells by about 4% to 5% throughout the day, this is a very beneficial property of leather. It thus adapts better to the foot and is more comfortable to wear. At the end of the day, however, you should place a shoe tree in the worn shoe so that the creases from walking are “smoothed” out of the leather and the shoe retains its shape.
4. Better thermal insulation compared to synthetic leather shoes
The foot is very well ventilated in a leather shoe thanks to the breathability mentioned above, and it also keeps the foot warm. In extremely cold temperatures, of course, you shouldn’t skip an additional lining in the shoe.
5. Appearance: Synthetic Leather vs. Genuine Leather
Finally, of course, there’s the appearance. The leather gives the shoe a look all its own, and every leather shoe is, so to speak, one of a kind, since every hide is different and every grain pattern differs in some way.
Additional sources (February 5, 2019):
- deerberg.de/blog/fashion/leather-shoes-5-compelling-advantages
- lederpedia(dot)de/publications/advantages_of_leather_over_substitutes
- info(dot)de/index.php/Breathability
