The hunt for the perfect pair of sneakers in 2025 is a trickier business than ever before. We demand a lot from our footwear: it needs to be comfortable enough for all-day wear, versatile enough to handle a weekend trail and a Monday morning commute, stylish enough to not look out of place in our favourite taproom, and, increasingly, it needs to be made with a conscience.

Finding a shoe that ticks all those boxes can feel like a fool’s errand, often forcing a compromise on one crucial element. It’s for precisely this reason that we’re always keeping a close eye on Lems, a brand that has consistently delivered on minimalist comfort, and with their latest release, they’ve added a hefty dose of eco-consciousness to the mix. Say hello to the Lems Primal Eco Sneakers, a shoe that might just be the answer we’ve all been looking for.

Building on the success of their popular Primal 3, the Primal Eco shares the same fantastic outsole, ensuring excellent ground contact and stability, but it’s in the construction where this shoe carves out its own impressive identity. This is where the Primal Eco truly earns its name and a place on our must-have list here at Coolector HQ. The upper design incorporates up to 50% recycled materials, blending recycled microfiber with airy mesh panels for a shoe that’s as breathable as it is responsible.

The commitment to sustainability continues underfoot with a signature cork insole, a brilliant natural material that provides exceptional comfort and coolness. The entire package is 100% vegan, making it a choice you can feel genuinely good about. It’s a design that lets you tread lightly on the planet in every sense of the word.

Of course, this being a Lems shoe, eco-credentials go hand-in-hand with unparalleled performance and a design philosophy centred on natural foot function. For anyone who has spent years cramming their feet into narrow, traditional shoes, the Lems WIDEST Natural-Shape™ fit is nothing short of a revelation. The generous foot-shaped toe box allows your toes the freedom to wiggle and spread, providing a foundation of stability and comfort that has to be felt to be believed.

This is complemented by a 0.0mm zero-drop platform, which places your heel and forefoot flat on the ground. This encourages a more natural, mid-foot strike, helping to align your spine and correct posture. It’s about letting your feet do what they were born to do, not forcing them into an unnatural position.

The secret to the shoe’s featherlight feel is the proprietary Injection Blown Rubber (IBR) outsole. This technology makes the Primal Eco incredibly lightweight and flexible, giving you a sense of weightlessness and a superb connection to the ground beneath you. But don’t mistake lightweight for flimsy. Lems has intelligently incorporated welded features to strengthen the eye-stay, reinforcing the shoe for increased longevity and proving that eco-friendly design can be tough as nails.

All this forward-thinking design and planet-friendly engineering is available for £125, which, in our opinion, is exceptional value for a shoe this versatile and well-considered. The Lems Primal Eco is a shoe that genuinely makes no compromises. It’s proof that performance and sustainability can and should go hand-in-hand, making it an essential addition to any modern adventurer’s wardrobe.