Kids Barefoot

Welcome to our children's barefoot shoes page. The idea behind Barefoot footwear comes from the acknowledgment that our feet evolved, over thousands of years, walking freely without any form of shoes at all. Therefore, whilst still providing the benefits of protection, warmth, comfort, and style that all forms of footwear can bring, barefoot shoes attempt to, at least partially, recreate natural freedom of movement in an unrestricted form.

There is, currently, no absolute description of what a barefoot shoe is, either for children or adults, but there are quite a few agreed upon values about what a barefoot shoe should, or shouldn’t, contain.
The phrase “barefoot” comes from these shoes attempting to mirror the feeling that the wearer is moving without anything on their feet. To achieve this, a child’s barefoot shoe will usually have a very thin sole. The thickness of the sole can vary between brands as they balance the needs of protecting the child’s foot, which is equally important in all children’s shoes, with maintaining the realistic feeling of the child’s feet walking, running, and jumping on the ground. Whatever your preference is, the soles of children’s barefoot shoes should feel flexible and lightweight.

Socks should generally still be worn in children’s barefoot shoes, unless the footwear contains any specific internal lining that would make them redundant, such as a cotton melange that can be found in some of our children’s shoe styles.

Kids’ barefoot shoes should provide the wearers with a feeling of freedom and should not restrict the feet. There will be no, or minimal, padding, allowing your children’s feet to naturally support themselves. To assist in this, children’s barefoot shoes will often have a wide toe box (the area where the toes go) which will allow children’s toes to spread out naturally to assist with gripping the ground when they are moving around and exploring the world, while also allowing for a more natural foot development. This does often mean that the front of the shoe will appear wider than the back.

Another important characteristic of children’s barefoot shoes is that they do not have a raised heel. Instead, they have what is commonly referred to as zero drop, where there is no drop in height from the front to the back of the shoe. The foot should remain flat in the shoe, which will enable your child’s feet to naturally support themselves, with their toes and heel being at the same height on the footbed, fractionally above the ground.