Ponto Footwear is a new sustainable footwear brand that offers one unisex shoe made with recycled and biodegradable materials.
Ponto Footwear Review
I found Ponto Footwear through an Instagram ad late last year and immediately added them to some of my shopping guides.
There were a lot of things I liked about them:
- The unisex style with a wider toe box
- The fact that they’re basically a sneaker you can wear to work
- The recycled leather, plant-based soles, and sustainable tencel lining
- The timeless simplicity of the style
- The price point. At $129, they’re more affordable than many sustainable brands.
Ponto Footwear sent me a pair of shoes to review for this post. I chose the Slate Blue. They make the same style in Men’s sizes. I decided to put together two looks – one more casual and one more business-appropriate – to highlight their versatility.
I wore these shoes for several days in a row so that I could share adequate comfort details.
Outfit 1: Wrap Top and Mom Jeans
These shoes are just the right color to pair with jeans. They’re not too bright and not too navy, but rather a muted, dusty blue that acts as a neutral. I also like the contrast sole.
Comfort:
I find these very comfortable. They include a removable insole with pretty good arch support. And the wider toe-box means there’s no pinching. I do find the tencel lining a bit scratchy, so I prefer to wear these with no-show socks (which is what I prefer anyway).
Durability:
While I haven’t worn these enough to know how they’ll hold up over time, I can say that the are made with a thick leather and robust sole that seem to bounce back instead of showing wear. The soles don’t hold dirt like some shoes do, and the leather barely wrinkles from normal movement.
Outfit 2: Gingham Blazer and Ponte Pants
I think these dress up nicely, as well. Of course, I could have chosen Black or Gray, which would have given the shoes a more traditional menswear feel. But I like that I have a pair of work-appropriate shoes that pair well with navy and brown. I have enough black shoe options already.
Fit:
Follow the size recommendations! I normally wear a size 8 and I went with an 8.5 in Ponto. The fit is just about perfect, and I feel like they would accommodate a wider foot, as well.
Sustainability:
As I mentioned, Ponto Footwear is made with recycled and bio-based materials. Packaging is also minimalist and biodegradable. Shipping is carbon neutral. And Ponto donates the greater of 1% of sales or 10% of profits to The Ocean Cleanup Project.
When I wore these on a recent church retreat, I got a lot of positive feedback, with two people saying they wanted to buy the same pair! I’m really impressed with the quality and sustainability of materials, and would highly recommend Ponto Footwear.
How are the Ponto shoes holding up now that it’s been a few months? The blue one looks so fun but I also love the idea of a gray one for work!
They’re holding up great and are by far my favorite work shoes. They strike a good balance between utilitarian and fashionable.
Oooh I like that they’re all one color! Very cool. I’ll have to go lok!
Those shoes look really nice, I recently wrote about wanting to get new walking shoes and knowing I’ll need to wear dress shoes again when I’m forced back in the office. I’m so glad to see a company make wider toe boxes. Even generally narrow feet need a little more wiggle room in most shoes, especially if one is walking/ standing around all day. Unfortunately, the colors don’t do much for me. If they had a brown or tan, then I’d be very tempted.
Yeah, they’re still pretty limited in their selection. They just added the orange color in the last two weeks, so I suspect they’ll continue to expand.