Setbacks are part and parcel of the outdoor experience. You know how it is – your bus doesn’t turn up (especially if you’re somewhere in the back of beyond and there’s only one a day), a freak storm makes matchsticks out of your tent poles, or you walk for three days to get to a knockout viewpoint, only to arrive at the same time as a busload of selfie-obsessed schoolkids. Still, nine times out of ten, these little hiccups are no big deal, and the scenery and experiences make the logistical speedbumps feel worth it.
Physical niggles, on the other hand, can well and truly derail a walking or cycling trip. You might be in decent shape, but as the miles mount up, even a minor gripe can grow larger and larger until it blocks out everything else.
And it was such a problem that Petr Procházka set out to solve with his Skinners Sock Shoes.
As a Czech law student working a holiday job in Norway, Procházka loved exploring the surrounding mountains in his spare time, but his walking buddy found ordinary hiking shoes incredibly uncomfortable. It got so unbearable that he binned off his footwear altogether and took to navigating the trails of Kristiansand wearing only socks. Which was one way of solving the problem, but perhaps not the most practical.
For Petr, walking in rural Norway was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and he didn't want his pal to miss out. Intent on finding a solution, he rooted out the sewing kit that his mum had packed for him and stitched makeshift soles onto a pair of socks. In creating a secure but more flexible alternative to a walking shoe, Petr had made the prototype for what would become the Skinners Sock Shoe – and he knew right away that he was onto something.
The Sock Shoe's overwhelming simplicity is what makes it so versatile – whether you're hiking, hutting, working out at the gym, mooching around camp or even just kicking back at home. The barefoot sensation brings you and your environment closer together, allowing for free, easy movement. Rigid shoes just can't compare.
Together with his co-founder, Michaela Matějková, Petr used crowdfunding platforms like Hithit, Indiegogo and Kickstarter to get the product off the ground – and it was the last of these where Skinners really made their mark. In 2016, they set up a campaign hoping to raise $10,000 for the Sock Shoe, and the Kickstarterati went absolutely mad for it. They smashed their initial target within 6 hours, and ended up raising over $600,000. From there, the pace really ramped up, and Skinners launched online sales less than a year later.
As with so many start-ups, crowdfunding has been a massive part of Skinners' meteoric rise in popularity. Particularly in the early days, the platforms helped them adapt to customer feedback far quicker than trad manufacturers, and they could make quick and ambitious product decisions without deferring to outside investors.
Five years after the launch of the original, Kickstarter saw a new campaign for the Sock Shoe 2.0 – refined through years of back-and-forth conversations with real-world users. Wider, more robust and with extra cushioning, this current version is a considerable step up from the first-gen one.
Tough yet flexible 3mm soles are super-grippy even when they get wet – making them perfect for water-based activities like paddle boarding – with a removable 2mm perforated insole that smooths out any lumps and bumps under your feet. The 3-layer Stretchknit uppers are quick-drying and moisture-wicking, while the seam-free construction is robust and comfortable. For the stinkier-footed, the Sock Shoes are also machine washable at 30 degrees.
Best of all, they roll up like a pair of socks (which is, after all, what they are) and weigh in at a featherlight 160g. Pack them away into the little storage bag that comes with them and there's genuinely no reason not to sling a pair in your duffel, whether you're wearing them for wild swims or padding through a sleeper train carriage on your way to the bathroom.
The da Vinci code
At the core of the Skinners design ethos is this quote by Leonardo da Vinci, genius of the Italian Renaissance, which was the central tenet of their very first Kickstarter campaign:
'The human foot is a masterpiece of engineering and a work of art.'
Unlike traditional outdoor shoes, the Sock Shoe supports your foot's natural movement by moulding to its unique shape and step. When you think about the strain your feet undergo during exercise – especially high impact stuff like hillwalking and running – and the fact that they tend to get missed out of most conditioning workouts, it's no surprise that the various small muscles and tendons can be easily strained, leading to tweaks and twinges.
Feet are supposed to flex, and by letting them do it freely, you strengthen your muscles and tendons. Not only can this stave off common complaints like bunions and flat feet, but you're also training the body's stability and balance to an extent that even keen athletes wouldn't normally.
This can have knock-on effects for your wider health, since stronger feet can help improve your posture and relieve any related back or hip pain. Which isn't to be sniffed at if you're shackled to a computer for long periods each day. Stick on a pair of sock shoes and even a quick leg-stretch around the block will be building flexibility and strength in your feet without you even noticing.
Over the years, the Sock Shoe has proved a big hit with runners. After all, everyone loved scampering around barefoot when we were kids, but it seems somehow less appealing on suburban pavements speckled with gravel and smashed Stella bottles. In Skinners, though, you can literally hop up and down on broken glass without slicing yourself.
If you're planning to use your Skinners for running or other activities like yoga or hiking, you might want to consider their Compression 2.0 model. With a longer length, compression fit and a toe box that's slightly snugger than the standard Sock Shoe 2.0, this variant is geared towards more intensive activity. They reckon you should get an absolute minimum of 800km (500 miles) out of each pair, which makes them pretty good value compared to your average running shoe.
Even with the padded insoles, barefoot running is one of those activities where you're best off working up to the big miles, and Skinners recommend combining the sock shoes with a thin inner sock for added comfort.
The brand has also turned its attention to the children's footwear market. After all, one of the best things about being a kid is freedom – but that's partly why a lot of kids are often reluctant to wear their shoes, their rain jacket, their sun hat or sometimes very many clothes at all. Seeing an opportunity here, Skinners adapted their stretchy sock shoes for little feet. Fuss-free, they're easy to put on, with no awkward laces to tie or Velcro to fasten. This allows little ones to climb, run, jump and play in seconds, with no tears or tantrums. The tough yet grippy sole delivers underfoot protection and sure-footed traction on any surface, from playgrounds to climbing frames, while simultaneously stopping them from getting mucky feet (and then walking mud indoors, all over your best carpet). Plus, wearing minimalist sock shoes has the same physiological benefits for kids as it does for adults, which is arguably even more crucial in formative early years as children grow and develop.
In a 2021 interview with the BEC, Michaela Matějková reckoned that after the containment and claustrophobia of the Covid-19 pandemic, 'the dedication to change our lifestyle and take better care of our bodies will only grow'.
And of course, Skinners was well-placed to get in on the action. As the market for alternative footwear has increased, Petr and Michaela have developed new styles – riding the barefoot shoe trend with their own uniquely comfortable versions that combine the function and comfort of the original Sock Shoe with the aesthetics of a more conventional minimalist shoe.
Skinners barefoot shoes aren't available in the UK yet, but they use a range of different materials including thicker leathers designed for wintry conditions. Intriguingly, November 2024 saw them launch a Kickstarter for the all-new Globetrotter travel trainer – the first barefoot shoe to be made of wood. Crafted from conifer trees harvested in renewable forests, the patented TreeKnit material makes up the upper part of the shoe, alongside a eucalyptus-based Lyocell lining and natural rubber outsole.
Petr and Michaela have always been keen to keep the Skinners brand close to home, and they're still based in the start-up-friendly city of Brno, in the South Moravian region of the Czech Republic.
They're proud of their Czech roots, and the Kickstarter campaign for the Sock Shoe 2.0 brought in over a million dollars – which remains among the highest sums raised by a Czech non-IT company on the platform. They've also raised a lot of their funds for product development on Czech crowdfunding platform, Hithit.
Apparently, Petr never did go back to studying law after that working holiday in Norway, but his Sock Shoes are now protecting adventurous feet in over a hundred countries – which isn't half bad for a product that started out with a sewing kit on the side of a Scandi mountain. We hope he said thank you to his mum.
