By Kerryn Moscicki, Radical Yes Founder & Brand Director.
There has been something of an unspoken revolution happening to womens wardrobes over the past few years.
Perhaps influenced by the trend toward ‘ath-leisure’ dressing, suddenly flats have become the daily shoe of choice for every working womans wardrobe (which for the sake of definition at Radical Yes we believe EVERY woman is a working woman regardless of her employment status).
The rising popularity of flats over heels doesn't just tell us something about fashion; it speaks of something much bigger about the role of women in society today. As fashion writer Holly Baxter pointed out in a recent piece for
The Guardian - “our skills are rapidly becoming worth more than our ability to decorate the room”.
With the spirit of revolution in mind, below we offer a selection of our 3 most versatile flat shoes you can wear all day, that we guarantee will negate the need to be carrying a ‘back up’. Radical YES!
The incredibly luxe satin upper material and belle epoque inspired tassel trim used on this statement cut loafer hides the more pragmatic inner workings of this shoe.
Look inside to reveal our signature athletic shoe standard insole board, injection-molded to create both heel and arch support. Cut to a padded thickness of more than 15 mm and executed in a durable thick pack rubber, the internal experience is nothing short of liberating. Also lined with an athletic inspired mesh to allow for all day breathability (just like your favourite pair of trainers).
Its’s not just the hidden details that make this shoe all-occasion wearable. Working equally well with high waisted man style pants for the walk to work, as they do for more casual studio meetings in denims and a fitted turtleneck, the covetable tassel feature creates an easy sense of dressed-up drama. With a power palette sunflower base, these shoes have also been executed completely vegan friendly, making
Dharma the perfect ethical pick to prove that comfort can be as luxurious as it is versatile.
Just like the Dharma silhouette, our
Plenty Jazz flat lace up has been constructed around our perfect spring, removable athletic insole board. With a broader set heel detail, this is a shoe we often recommend for accomodating orthotics wearers.
We love Patent leather for ‘transition’ inspired shoes. That is shoes that you can wear as much on the hop out and about, as you can when you arrive indoors - whether that be the office, the art gallery or school pick up.
Patent is incredibly durable and weather friendly, but most importantly it also has a sense of sharpness to it that will help negate the need for a ‘back up’ pair of smart shoes in your bag. We love the contrast of the feminine grossgrain lace detail on these man style flats and play up the masculine appeal with smart blazers and button down shirts for weekday easy.
The joy at hearing your work has gone casual can also sometimes give way to a well of confusion - it’s great you are no longer forced to wear heels, but what do you wear to maintain a sense of considered ‘dressed up-ness’ at work?
It’s a question we have a lot of customers asking us in The Fitting Salon, and the shoe we always refer them to in this circumstance is our classic
Boundless Low Cut trainer. The proportions of this shoe are so neat around the ankle, but it’s the sophisticated combination of the light coloured upper set over a black outsole that makes these a truly versatile shoe.
