One teen faced a dramatic situation over her shoe choice on back-to-school day, as seen on TikTok. On Thursday, British mother Whitney Ainscough took to the social media app to share how her daughter, a seventh grader, faced conflict due to her footwear.
The incident, according to Ainscough, revolved around her child’s choice to wear flats on the first day of school — to be exact, a pair of black patent leather Vivienne Westwood flats, topped on each toe with the brand’s signature Orb badges.
“I got a phone call saying the shoes that she has are not within the policy,” Ainscough said in her video discussing the incident. “So, I’ve spent 100 pounds on some shoes she cannot wear — quite a bit fuming.”
Ainscough continued the saga in a second video, emphasizing her confusion over the school’s decision to send her daughter home unless a shoe change was made — particularly as the flats were bought to mark the special start of her daughter’s first year of middle school.
“Each to their own — you can spend ten pounds on shoes, you can spend a hundred pounds on shoes, but that’s a choice I made,” she said. “What’s the problem? She’s not going to have a different education because of a pair of f-cking shoes.”
This wasn’t the only instance of students in the United Kingdom facing issues with their new footwear at the start of the 2023-2024 school year. At a school in the town of Gateshead, several were taken out of their classes and requested to change their shoes — which included Nike sneakers and Vivienne Westwood heels — for suggested pairs of brogues, according to Chronicle Live.
As previously reported in FN, this year’s back-to-school season is crucial for many shoe-focused companies due to low sales throughout 2023, likely owed to cautious consumer spending. However, executives are optimistic for the upcoming year due to the wide growth range that kids’ shoes have over time.
“One of the nice things that’s inherent in the kids’ business is their feet are always growing,” said Mike Edwards, president of Caleres-owned Famous Footwear. “There’s always this demand built into the business, where mom and dad have to prioritize the kid.”
About the Author:
Aaron Royce is the Digital Editor for Footwear News, where he writes stories on trending news, celebrity style, collaborations and in-depth profile interviews. Prior to joining Footwear News, Aaron wrote and interned for publications including PAPER, Grazia and the Daily Front Row. He currently holds a B.S. in mass communications from Virginia Commonwealth University.
