Fitness Shoes - The Current Footwear Sensation

The footwear industry at the moment is seeing one of the biggest new markets ever - that of the 'fitness' or 'toning' shoe. Once a limited-appeal product created by just a handful manufacturers, this type of shoe has exploded into the latest footwear must-have.

One of the first manufacturers of this kind of shoe was MBT. Created in 1999, the company's 'Masai Barefoot Technology' shoes mimicked walking on soft, uneven ground, with the intention of promoting the body's 'natural instability'.

A loyal following for MBT shoes developed over many years, however the product remained a very niche product. MBT chose retailers extremely carefully and all underwent training specifically on this product. Only traditional 'bricks and mortar' stores were allowed to become MBT stockists.

In 2007, Fitflops emerged as a new player in the market. FitFlops were invented by Marcia Kilgore, who initially developed them as a solution to fight cellulite.

In mid 2009, Skechers entered the market, with their 'Tone-Ups' and 'Shape-Ups' ranges. Looking similar to FitFlops and MBT, the products were backed up by a huge marketing campaign. Until that time, primarily a fashion shoe retailer, the fitness part of Skechers range has now become a huge market for them.

Undercutting the traditional brands and welcoming online retailers, Skechers took a large section of the existing market and open up this kind of footwear to the masses. According to a recent survey, Skechers now have around 54% of the toning shoe market.

Not to be left out, many other retailers have also developed their fitness shoes, including Reebok's EasyTone, Puma's Bodytone and the Truebalance range from New Balance.

FitFlops and Skechers have also greatly increased their offerings since launch, with the toning shoe platform now used on everything from Flip Flops to Ugg-style boots.

From a niche product created by just a handful of manufacturers, the toning shoe industry has expanded into a huge part of the global footwear business over recent years. From a market worth $17million in 2008, it increased to $145 million in 2009 and an estimated $1.5billion in 2010.

Carl Fraser is Managing Director of Totally Commerce Ltd, owners of http://www.TotallyShoes.co.uk - Retailers of leading brand footwear in the UK.

Totally Commerce Ltd also operate several other websites in different business areas.