US footwear inflation outpaces wider price growth
Footwear prices in the U.S. rose 4.2% year on year in April, the sharpest increase in 43 months, according to the Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America (FDRA).
The organisation said footwear inflation is now running ahead of broader U.S. inflation, which reached 3.8% in April. FDRA linked the stronger rise in footwear prices to the impact of tariffs on imported products.
senior vice-president and executive director of the Footwear Innovation Foundation at FDRA, Andy Polk, said higher tariffs are increasingly being passed through to consumers.
Women’s footwear prices recorded the largest rise in April, increasing 4.5%, while men’s and children’s footwear prices both climbed 3.9%.
FDRA chief economist Gary Raines said the average duty-paid import cost per pair of footwear increased 13.7% in the first quarter compared to the same period last year, with further pricing pressure expected through 2026.
