WATERPROOF SNEAKERS: BECAUSE WET SOCKS SUCK

The ongoing, seemingly unstoppable rise of On is a spectacle. Founded in just 2010, the Swiss brand cracked the sports footwear market wide open with pairs like the Cloudvista. The label’s signature Helion™ CloudTec foam midsole couples with a waterproof ripstop upper and thermoplastic polyurethane mudguard typify the kind of high-tech functionality that every pair offers.

It’s well-documented that Alicia Keys hates having wet feet, and she’s not someone to sit around complaining. With the help of Moncler, the artist put her spin on the Acqua High Rain Boots, which feature an airtight recycled EVA boot to keep the rain out and a knit sock liner for comfort.

Merrell’s entry into the zeitgeist can be chalked up to several forces. The refreshing realness of objectively ugly footwear acted as the medicine to a decade of sleek, seemingly lab-made technical runners in recent years. Combine that with some clever repositioning through collaborations with names like Reese Cooper and Awake NY, and don’t forget the still-prevalent power of gorp. The result? The possibility of seeing designs like the Moab Hybrid Zip for what they are: perfectly engineered waterproof sneakers with serious personality.

Suicoke’s PEPPER-evab not only caters to wet weather, but also the cold. Boasting a Thinsulate™-insulated, quilted 3M™ upper and an eVent waterproof lining, the chunky silhouette packs a utilitarian punch.

One of the easiest ways to make the seasonal footwear switch is by swapping the New Balance 2002R GTX for the pair of regular New Balance 2002Rs that you already have. Now fitted with waterproof GORE-TEX uppers, the design loses none of its normcore-fuelled versatility.

Hailing from Switzerland, Mammut is a brand forged in the cold. It’s a safe bet for things like waterproof sneakers. Take the Sertig II Low GTX, for example, which has a bonded GORE-TEX upper and an equally hard-wearing treaded outsole to take on tricky terrain. Even if that, for you, means a slippier-than-usual sidewalk.

Salomon’s fashion credentials are, at this point, undeniable. Before the French brand took over all sides of the sneaker world, Boris Bidjan Saberi was experimenting with the brutal functionality of the silhouettes, emphasizing an almost dystopian, futuristic element to the design with washed-out palettes and distressed textures. With a bonded GORE-TEX upper with a zip fastening, this high-top waterproof sneaker is as sleek as they come.

Many waterproof sneakers stick to classically utilitarian color palettes. The Saucony Peregrine 13 GTX looks particularly dashing in brown and pale green tones, standing out from the crowd. The neutral colorway tempers the highly functional silhouette, complete with a GORE-TEX upper, PWRRUN foam rubber midsole, and treaded PWRTRAC rubber outsole.