This Is About to Be 2025's Most Controversial Shoe Trend (2024)

There's one specific shoe at the top of my wish list right now that, one year ago, I would have never considered purchasing. Up until just a few months ago, I was under the impression that heels and boots should only ever have one of three toe shapes: almond, pointed, or square. Round-toe styles didn't exist in my world, with the only exception being ballet-associated shapes. Whenever I'd see them out or at fashion events, I was always noticeably taken aback, probably because every trending shoe style in recent memory felt like their complete opposite—sharp, elongating, and pointy.

Then, Pieter Mulier debuted his F/W 24 collection for Alaïa, and in it were multiple pairs of ankle-strap pumps with mega toe cleavage and delicate round toes. Made of patent leather, the controversial heels were colored in shades of blush pink, cerulean, and regal purple, as well as classic black and white. In a moment, everything I thought I knew about round-toe shoes was swiftly ushered out my front door. All that was left was adoration—that, and a hankering for one or more pairs of the style I once adamantly swore off.

It didn't take long for the entire fashion world to catch on. A few weeks after Alaïa's show in January 2024, when the February shows kicked off, round-toe shoes proved to be more than just a one-hit wonder. Carven's Paris show featured rounded flat boots in luxurious brown and champagne-colored satin, while Proenza Schouler featured heeled, wide-calf boots with the same smooth toe shape at its show in New York. Sportmax's F/W 24 collection, which debuted in Milan, included a bevy of round-toe, ankle-strap pumps similar to Alaïa's, but with a skinnier heel and new shades, including navy blue and red.

Midway through New York Fashion Week this season, I came face to face with a lust-worthy pair at the Neous showroom and immediately knew what I had to do. I snapped a photo and posted it to my Instagram Stories, adding a poll to find out what the general consensus was about round-toe shoes and their growing comeback. Well, 55% of the people who participated voted no to a round-toe renaissance. But they haven't seen what I've seen. That is, the 29 pairs of shoes below. Scroll down to shop round-toe shoes—the 2025 version. After seeing the offering that's set to arrive in stores next spring on the S/S 25 runways, it's crystal clear to me that, while controversial right now, round-toe shoes are in for an impressive renaissance.

Shop the round-toe shoe trend: