Sneakers these days are mostly pretty awful. Everywhere I look I see neon colors and shiny plastic, both of which are bad ideas, unless you want to look like a teenager. While it’s a good idea to wear wingtips, sometimes in these summer days you just need something more casual and light than heavy leather shoes (look for light leather shoes, because you should always try and choose leather). Quality simple sneakers are hard to find, but there are a few good options out there. One option in particular are the Lacoste Giron PUS shoes, but with one caveat: your grandpa might steal them.
White shoes are pretty questionable, given how easily they get dirty and scuffed, and these are no exception. These shoes are white–right out of the box you’re going to need some sunglasses for the glare. They look like shoes your grandpa would wear to the driving range. However, despite their ultimate whiteness, the scuffs and stains from normal wear and tear are visible but minimal.
In the above photo, I accidentally hit my heel on something and scuffed the sole and the leather (look to the left of the “L”). I got a wet rag and the marks wiped off fairly easily. I also had a water/mud stain on the toe of one of the shoes, and it wiped off entirely. This is great news for white shoes, and is a benefit of the leather construction (as opposed to cloth).
The leather shoes are light enough to wear in the sun and heat, and won’t induce a lot of foot sweating. However, if you plan on going sockless with these, I would advise against wearing them. There is some weird construction on the inside of the shoe near where your toes meet your foot that will scrap on the top of your foot, and so far it hasn’t shown any signs of smoothing off. Maybe in a few months it won’t hurt, but it will take some breaking in before I try to wear these sockless again.
The best thing about these shoes is how no nonsense they are: solid color, simple stripes, no extravagant logos. I’d like them more without the Lacoste alligator thing on the side, but that’s a small complaint. Overall these sneakers are welcome additions to my wardrobe for the summer. The worst thing about them? The price. They will run you over $100 no matter where you look, and at that price point a lot of folks will turn away at the price alone. However, for a nice pair of leather shoes that will last you many years, the quality easily justifies the price. The Lacoste Giron PUS (why are they called “PUS,” anyways…does anyone know?) shoes are overall pretty awesome, but be sure you’re wearing socks with them or you will cut your feet up pretty bad at first.
