yellow doc marten combat boots

Once associated with slimy tofu alternatives and anemic tree huggers, the vegan lifestyle is going through a shift in popularity due to the advancement of vegan products and celebrity attachment. Adored icons such as Lizzo, Venus Williams, and Tabitha Brown have promoted both the diet and the lifestyle through social media. This has ignited an upward trend in veganism, especially for Gen Z and younger. 

In the fashion industry, non-vegan products, such as leather, are tied to environmental issues like deforestation, gas emissions, and water misuse due to the livestock needed. On top of these dirty side effects of non-vegan fashion, an increasing number of consumers prefer items produced in ways that are harmless to animals.

So, now that it’s cool to be vegan, you’ve got to look the part as well. I’ve prepared a short list of brands with vegan clothing products to help you get ahead of the upcoming non-dairy trends in fashion. 

Adidas

Adidas is a quintessential sports brand which has seen recent success by reviving retro styles that have me twinning with my dad. Classic styles such as the Stan Smith and Samba have vegan versions on their website, free of leather or suede and featuring recycled materials. If matching your parents isn’t your thing, Adidas also collaborates with iconic people and brands for more modern styles. Of both environmental and musical note, they have announced a collab with Willow Smith and Parley for the Oceans titled the “Futurecraft.Loop.” It is a 100% recyclable sneaker made from plastic that would otherwise be polluting the ocean. Cool, eco-friendly, and endorsed by an icon, what’s not to love? 

Rombaut

The idea of veganness can oftentimes conjure up images of hippies, farm life, and angry activists, which when translated into fashion, makes for a style somewhere between Stevie Nicks and Reformation. However, the truth is that the vegan community is diverse in identity and personality. The brand Rombaut showcases this by creating edgy, exuberant, and eccentric shoes that fit into any avant-garde fashionista’s wardrobe. They do this all while keeping a sustainable and vegan ethos at the core of their brand. Rombaut recycles old textiles and features a vegan leather material in their shoes. Their products show that being cool and saving the planet are not mutually exclusive. 

Matt & Nat

From handbags and shoes to jackets and belts, leather is a key component in a lot of these stylish staples. Matt & Nat offers vegan versions of your favorite classy leather garments and accessories. They primarily use polyurethane plastic (PU) rather than PVC to make their leather as it has a decidedly smaller impact on the environment. Further closing their production loop, they also feature recycled nylons, cork, and rubber. Prioritizing durability and timelessness in their designs, Matt & Nat offer a smart vegan option for clothes with an extended lifespan. 

Doc Martens

If I am ever in the mood to add an edgy element to my outfit, feel taller, or cover my ankles in blisters, then I always reach for my docs. Their durable boots and shoes have become a staple, from hip teens to city girls braving a rainy day. Unfortunately, their hero product – the leather boot – relies heavily on bovine leather. But, on the bright side, in 2011 they introduced a vegan line of shoes using plastic-based vegan leather. The importance of their vegan line is that it offers almost identical alternatives to their bovine leather products, including the classics. This works to normalize vegan fashion and make it accessible, rather than having a different, specialty vegan line. Vegan docs show that you don’t have to switch up your wardrobe to go vegan. 

Protecting the planet with style doesn’t have to be through sustainable fashion brands with questionable tastes, just as dressing vegan doesn’t have to be limited to recycled denim and hemp seed bracelets. Between saving adorable animals to preventing deforestation and gas emissions, the reasons for turning your closet vegan are too great to ignore. Remember, every action matters, no matter how small, so even just incorporating some vegan garments into your wardrobe is a step in the right direction. And if you use this guide to do so, you’ll be looking better than even chocolate oat milk tastes. 

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