The Shoe That Shouldn’t Work, But Does
A new shoe category is quietly elbowing its way into fall wardrobes, and it arrives with an identity that feels almost contradictory on paper. Sneakerinas take the slim, low-profile silhouette of a ballet flat and fuse it with the sporty construction details you’d expect on a running shoe – rubber soles, structured toe boxes, athletic proportions. The result looks slightly strange in isolation and then suddenly, undeniably right once you see it worn.
The hybrid has moved well past runway novelty. Nike, Chloé, and Louis Vuitton have all released their own versions, which signals less of an experimental moment and more of a full category arrival. Among the options multiplying across price points and aesthetics, VIVAIA’s Carol Sneakerinas have gotten the most notable real-world traction – and the women wearing them aren’t doing so for press.
How Bella Hadid Made a Case Without Trying To
Bella Hadid was photographed in VIVAIA’s Carol Sneakerinas in black, styled with knee-high socks, a little black dress, and an oversized tan jacket. It’s a combination that reads as effortless in the specific way Hadid has made her signature – nothing coordinates too neatly, nothing announces itself, and the whole outfit somehow looks better for the lack of obvious effort. The sneakerinas sat at the center of it without demanding attention, which is exactly how a transitional shoe earns long-term wear.
According to VIVAIA, that outing was Hadid’s fourth time wearing the brand’s shoes in public. That frequency matters more than any single sighting. One celebrity appearance is a gifting arrangement. Four appearances across different occasions is a preference.
Lola Tung was separately photographed leaving LIVE with Kelly and Mark in New York City on September 2, 2025, wearing VIVAIA’s white Christina Sneakerinas – a different style from the same brand, worn in a lighter, more relaxed register. Where Hadid’s look leaned into contrast and edge, Tung’s read as breezy and straightforward. The fact that two women with genuinely different dressing instincts arrived independently at VIVAIA’s interpretation of this trend suggests the shoes have a range that most trend pieces don’t bother to stress-test.
Why the Silhouette Actually Functions
The sneakerina works because it solves a specific problem that neither parent shoe handles alone. Ballet flats are elegant and minimal, but they offer almost no support and can look precious when paired with anything casual. Sneakers are comfortable and versatile, but the bulk of most athletic silhouettes fights with anything that reads as delicate or dressed-up. The sneakerina splits the difference – it borrows the low-to-the-ground femininity of the flat and grafts on the structural support of a sneaker without inheriting the visual weight.
That balance is why the trend finds traction with wardrobes that already include both categories. It doesn’t replace either shoe – it fills the gap between them, which turns out to be a gap that gets used constantly. Jeans, midi skirts, tailored trousers, even sheer dresses all have documented outfits with sneakerinas by now, across different women and different settings.
Where VIVAIA Fits in a Market Full of Options
VIVAIA sits at an interesting position in the sneakerina conversation. Nike, Chloé, and Louis Vuitton carry the brand recognition that drives initial awareness of any footwear trend, but their versions come attached to price points and aesthetic codes that narrow the audience. VIVAIA operates differently – it’s the brand that Hadid and Tung gravitated toward despite having access to any label they wanted. That says something about the product itself rather than the brand’s marketing weight.
The Carol and Christina styles function as two distinct interpretations of the same concept. The Carol, in black, carries more structure and edge. The Christina, in white, operates closer to the flat end of the hybrid spectrum – softer, lighter, less aggressive in its sporty detailing. Having both styles worn publicly by different women, in the same short window, gives the brand a real-world style range that most footwear debuts don’t get demonstrated this quickly.
The broader sneakerina category will keep expanding through fall as more brands release their versions and more outfits surface online. But the early data from actual usage – not runway presentation, not editorial – points toward the lower-profile, barely-there end of the sneakerina spectrum performing best. Shoes that can disappear into an outfit while still providing the comfort architecture of a sneaker are the ones generating repeat wear rather than single-occasion experiments.
Hadid’s fourth outing in the Carol Sneakerinas is the detail that keeps pulling focus. Whatever the first three occasions looked like, she came back three more times – which, for a shoe category that still feels unfamiliar to most people, is the most direct argument for paying attention.
