At the height of the luxury trainer hype, many in the fashion world questioned if formal shoes would ever regain quite the same appeal they once had. Then came a global pandemic that effectively rendered them null and void. Thankfully, labels did not omit them from the seasonal menswear cycle and with a return to normality on the cards, Oxfords, Derbies, monk straps and loafers have well and truly returned to their rightful place at the top of the footwear podium.
And the designs have never looked better. Whether you’re making a stylish return to the office or an influx of rescheduled weddings is filling up your calendar, there’ll be no patent leather shoe left un-buffed in 2023. In fact, regardless of events dressing, you’ll never be without reason to don a pair of formal shoes, which is why every man should own at least one good pair of black leather shoes and one good pair of brown ones (though that number rises exponentially depending on which GQ staffer you’re asking).
From the modernised takes of Grenson and Dr Martens to the outright elegance of Church’s, Prada, Burberry, and more, shop GQ‘s pick of the formal shoes you should be stepping out in.
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