Spring 2022’s Biggest Shoe Trend? Platform Boots

Longtime Dr Martens fans will be pleased to know the boots retain their cult status in 2022. The pumped up Jadons in particular – which boast an “empowering” air-cushioned sole – are ideal for those who prefer their grungy staples with added height.

Gothic platforms have been doing the rounds, too. Dua Lipa has added Balenciaga’s heavy-duty Bulldozer boots – which are as intense as they sound with a rigid leather upper, utilitarian eyelets and spiky stacked tread – to her impressive footwear collection. She’s also the proud owner of Miu Miu’s chain-adorned biker boots, which were a recurring theme on the fashion pack outside the spring/summer 2022 shows.

On the subject of all things gothic, Rihanna is already a fan of Rick Owens’s Berghain-worthy platforms, so maybe she’ll dare to wear his new season thigh-high boots, unveiled at his autumn/winter 2022 show, as part of her seriously high-octane maternity wardrobe.

If Owens’s extreme platforms are a step too far for you, there were plenty of tamer alternatives at the autumn/winter 2022 shows. Peter Do’s high-shine platforms came with square toes, and at Givenchy, curvaceous boots were realised in skin-tight leather. Matthieu Blazy included intrecciato boots in his debut Bottega Veneta collection; Yoon Ahn presented shin-grazing buckle boots at Ambush, and at Balmain, ankle boots had some seriously amped-up soles. The prettiest inspiration came courtesy of Molly Goddard, who looked to Camden Market and the Portobello social scene in the ’80s and ’90s for this season. The result? Taffeta and tulle dresses paired with playful lace-up platform boots.

While her sister Kim has been wearing Balenciaga’s Knife boots non-stop, Kendall Jenner has jumped on the platform bandwagon with a pair of extreme boots from Marc Jacobs’s autumn/winter 2017 collection. They added a good five inches to her 5ft 10ins frame for a trip to the Super Bowl last month. (“Currently 6’3”, she wrote on her Instagram Stories).

Like singer Olivia Rodrigo, who pairs her platforms with floaty dresses on the red carpet, Jenner knows the boots are a perfect way to toughen up an ultra-feminine outfit. When you put on your pair, just remember what original platform fan Bowie said. “Never look back, walk tall, look fine.”

Read more: The Best Winter Boots