Lidl has relaunched its ultra cheap 12,99 euro sneaker

It was always going to fly off the shelves, a colourful sneaker with a nod to retro fashion and an insanely cheap price tag of 12,99 euros. After a successful roll-out last summer, the sneakers are back in store and online. Except in the UK, where the trainers have not (yet) been made available.

Following their sell-out launch last July and again November, the trainers are available in markets including Belgium and the Netherlands and will launch in Italy from May 10th. In the latter the instantly recognisable blue and yeller trainers will be on the shelves of all the chain’s 680 stores.

The shoes, initially launched in countries such as Belgium, UK, Germany and Finland, became a must-have, even going so far as to be re-sold on Ebay for hundreds of euros. On social media crowds of shoppers queuing outside Lidl to buy the shoes went viral. As did dozens of memes poking fun at the allotted attention. Even Pope Francis waded in.

The Mirror, a British tabloid, reported last year that secondary sales channels that the re-sale value was up to 450 pounds. Not bad for a shoe that cost the equivalent of a bottle of wine.

In the UK, a pair of women’s leather sandals costing 7,99 pounds is the only footwear available on Lidl’s website. In Europe, the popular slides (costing 6,99 euros) are also back in stock.

For those who uphold sustainability considerations when making a fashion purchase, the costs cut to produce a shoe at this ridiculously low price means someone else is paying the price. With a minimum wage of less than 100 dollars per month, Bangladeshi garment workers, who sew much of Lidl’s fashion and accessory offer, earn approximately 50 cents per hour.