Last week, Allbirds sold for $39 million to American Exchange Group, a vast drop from the peak $4 billion valuation Allbirds had when it went public in 2021. But it’s not just Allbirds that’s dealing with decline in sales. The DTC brand is just one example of a shoe brand that stumbled in an ever-competitive market. The Allbirds fire sale also comes at a time when many sneaker brands are on a comedown after years of growth, thanks to ongoing demand. With that news, this week’s episode takes a look at the larger state of sneakers. Companies like On and Hoka, deemed darlings just a couple of years ago, are experiencing a slowdown in sales. Meanwhile, specialty running brands like Brooks and Asics are having a moment thanks to their positioning, offering technical designs. All the while, legacy player Nike is slowly but surely regaining its top spot as revenue recovers. To discuss these challenges many sneaker brands face, host Gabi Barkho is joined by senior reporter Julia Waldow. The duo speak about: How footwear brands lose their way as trends come and go. Fierce competition from the challenger brands means incumbents like New Balance and Nike are clawing their way back to regaining market share. The increase in unforeseen challenges in the category, like tariffs and the rising cost of synthetic rubber.

Has the latest sneaker bubble officially burst?

The Modern Retail Podcast

# Full Transcript

**Podcast:** The Modern Retail Podcast

## Transcript

If you're running creator and affiliate programs across separate platforms for every channel you sell on, there's a better way. Levanta lets brands and agencies run one unified program across Amazon, Shopify, and Walmart from discovery to payout in a single platform. Find the right creators fast, activate partnerships and clicks, and see exactly what's driving revenue across every channel.

And right now, when you book a demo, you'll get a $100 gift card of your choice. Stop paying for three tools to do one job. Head to levanta.io slash podcast to book your demo and claim your gift card.

Welcome to The Modern Retail Podcast, our show that covers the ways the retail industry is changing and modernizing. I'm senior reporter Gabby Barco. Last week, Allbirds sold for $39 million to American Exchange Group, a sharp drop from its valuation of $4 billion in 2021. Allbirds is just one example of a shoe brand that stumbled in its quest to gain market share in a busy sneaker market.

Its trajectory is indicative of how fierce the competition has become as new and legacy players vie for consumers' dollars. On the heels of that news, I thought this would be a good time to check in on the larger state of sneakers. I'm joined by senior reporter Julia Waldo, who's going to break down how all the different companies in the space are faring in 2026. Julia, welcome back to the show.

Thank you. Glad to be here. Thanks for having me. Yeah, I wanted you to come on to talk about the sneaker space in particular because it is a category that you cover pretty heavily for modern retail. And I feel like you followed these brands, you know, for the last few years as each of them have either exploded or kind of fallen from grace in some cases.

So why don't you tell us a little bit about your theory on why the sneaker bubble, so to speak, has burst, at least the latest one we've been in after almost a decade of growth? Yeah, it's an interesting topic. So basically what we saw is a huge amount of growth in the sneaker market in the early phase of the pandemic.

A lot of people were, you know, stuck at home, but for their limited time in which they could be outside, they wanted to take up running, take up, you know, intense jogging, quick walking. So a lot of folks started buying sneakers, buying running shoes specifically, and those brands really started to take off. Now, that was a time of a lot of growth for some of these legacy players like Nike and like Adidas, you know, folks that had been in the running and sneaker game for a long time.

But also during that period, we saw this rise of, you know, newer companies that came to really eat their lunch, so to speak, such as, you know, Hoka and On. And, you know, those two kind of groups have really been battling for consumers' attention for the past few years. And now, you know, six years out from the pandemic, we're kind of seeing a more leveling ou...

Has the latest sneaker bubble officially burst?

Transcript

Built for investment professionals

Every day you wait, your competitors are finding
edge in conversations you're not hearing.

Has the latest sneaker bubble officially burst?

Transcript

Built for investment professionals

Every day you wait, your competitors are findingedge in conversations you're not hearing.

Every day you wait, your competitors are finding
edge in conversations you're not hearing.