The BEST Minimal Leather Sneakers _ 6 Common Projects Alternatives

The holy grail of minimalist white sneakers is the common projects Achilles low , but at a retail price of $425 these legendary shoes are pretty much too expensive for most guys .

So in this video , we're going to look at six common projects , Achilles low alternatives including our favorite options under 102 103 $100 .

And of course , links to all these sneakers can be found down below in the description if you are new to the channel .

Welcome .

Thank you for clicking on this video .

I hope you enjoy it enough to hit that like button and consider subscribing .

And if you're already subscribed , you might be wondering Brock , where are you right now ?

That's a good question .

I'm in Brooklyn , New York with my good friend and men's heritage style expert , Nick English .

Nick runs Stride Wise , a website and youtube channel dedicated to men's boo jeans , leather goods and more .

And between Nick and myself , we've tested pretty much all of the most popular minimalist leather sneaker brands .

So he's the perfect guy to help out with this video .

And before we get into the list , Nick , tell us .

Why are common projects so popular ?

Common projects ?

Uh Thanks for having me .

By the way , it's good to have you .

Um I mean common projects .

It's a shoe brand that has amassed a really dedicated following like a cult following among sneaker heads and fashion enthusiasts in general .

Uh their Achilles line really started the minimalist sneaker craze and it spawned a whole new category filled with the copycats and spinoffs of this shoe .

It's the brainchild of an American art director and an Italian brand consultant .

And Colin projects runs a really bare bones operation .

Like part of their appeal is they have like practically no marketing to speak of and a barely functional website .

And so that makes people kind of want them more because they just don't try to sell their shoe at all .

And the brand has made its way into the luxury shoe space shoe space pretty much just through word of mouth .

They are made in Italy , which is a big part of the appeal .

They've got hand selected cough skin leather and like many high end products , these sneakers will get better with age .

They become so popular that stockists have often had trouble keeping them around .

Even with the 400 plus dollar price tag , people always ask , are they overpriced ?

It definitely depends on who you ask .

They're extremely high quality shoes , but you're definitely paying extra markup for the designer brand name and the status which you can get from these little uh gold stamp numbers on the heel .

That's what shows this is a common project shoe and just these little gold numbers here , which is like the uh the lot number where they're made .

That's like the reason for a lot of the extra price of these shoes .

But if you don't care about brand and you don't care about these little numbers and you just like having a low profile minimalist white sneaker .

One of these options here is definitely gonna give you the best bang for your buck .

So let's start with the best option under $300 .

And that is the Coy Capri .

This is my personal favorite minimal leather sneaker made by hand in the mad region of Italy Coos Capri sneaker has a full grain Italian leather upper and it has all the other hallmarks of luxury sneaker .

So full leather lining , removable insole mar gum , outsole hand painted edges , the suede heel counter and waxed cotton laces that are also from Italy .

So unlike some of the other shoes on this list , the coil Capri isn't just a common projects clone .

It is minimal and of course , it's made from leather , but it has its own slightly unique silhouette that I think kind of sets it apart from the pack .

It has a more dramatically tapered shape than many of these other leather sneakers , including the common projects .

And that means that it's slightly wider at the widest part of the and slightly more narrow through the end step .

So I find it very comfortable on my foot .

It also has a noticeably shorter toe box which gives it kind of a low profile .

When you look at it from the side , the capri branding is monochromatic .

It's extremely subtle .

The coo logo and word are just embossed on the heel and on the tongue and I really like that .

It doesn't have over branding .

So I've worn the capri for a few years .

This is my newer pair .

I have another pair that's a few years old and they've aged wonderfully .

I really think that these are the best minimal leather sneakers under $300 .

And even if you have the budget for common projects , I would consider the coo capri another really good option for the under $300 common project alternative is the arise new .

After a few weeks of wearing the new from Idris , I finally realized what was so different about this particular premium calf skin sneaker and that the leather had increased , which is very rare and it's due to a couple of factors .

First off is the fact that the calf leather which is uh tanned in Kimo Italy is 1.9 millimeters thick and it's much thicker than most sneakers .

Even most common projects alternatives .

The other important factor here is that these shoes are made to order .

So once you click purchase , they get to work , making the shoe for you .

The downside is that this means it takes like a few weeks to get to you .

But the upside is the leather is fresh because it hasn't been sitting in a warehouse somewhere for months , drying out and becoming less supple .

So you get these sneakers that are , yeah , they , they don't crease and they feel like more kind of meaty on your feet , do you know , is Magam sole is also a bit thicker than a lot of other brands .

And the has a Cork mid sole , which is like a very old school shock absorption feature that you usually just find in boots .

The bottom line is these are comfy , durable sneakers that will go the distance and they tend to crease less than competitors .

So the downsides though are again the weight period and they're also not quite as low profile as shoes like the common projects or some of the other options on this list .

So like it's sort of like a compromise between like a really low profile sneaker like this and a chunkier sneaker like a an Adidas sneaker .

For example , by the way , when you're ordering , these are open going half to a full size , larger than your true size .

For some reason , they suggest going down , but uh you got a size up .

So one of the best options under $200 is the Oliver Cabell low one .

Now , the low one could be described as a common projects , Achilles homage sold at a more affordable price point .

It's very similar to the common projects Achilles .

It even has this gold lettering on the heel and otherwise unmarked upper .

So I think that's a clear hat tip to common projects .

Now when the low one first launched , it was on par with some of the lower priced brands on this list .

It couldn't really compete with the Coo Capri for example .

But Oliver Cabell decided to reinvent this shoe from the ground up and like the Coo Capri , it's now made in the region of Italy .

I really just like saying map it all the time .

I get in trouble .

Yeah , it's pretty good .

The upper is three ounce full grain calf skin from the same region and the L is Margo the foot bed lining the laces .

They're all from Italy and that puts the sneaker squarely in the luxury category despite the lower price point .

So this shoe has a straight profile but it's actually pretty narrow .

So if you have a wider foot , you might want to size up or try a different brand .

But considering the low one costs less than $200 when it's on sale , which is always on sale .

Oliver Cabell is clearly one of the best common projects alternatives we've come across to date next up .

Probably the best value common project alternative I think in my opinion is the premier low top from Thursday .

That's a company best known for their boots , Thursday boot company .

But they've also entered the sneaky game with this really in minimalist sneaker .

It's just 100 and $29 and it has just about all the hallmarks that people want from sneakers like this .

Like the leather is from Veet in Italy and it's Napa leather , meaning it's unusually soft and smooth .

Like most of the other options on this list , it's lined with vegetable tanned sheep skin , which is surprisingly durable , like a surprisingly durable tanning method for a sneaker like this .

And it comes with a medium density high rebound polyurethane foam to help with the shock absorption and also like it helps with comfort as well when you're wearing them .

Another unusual thing about these shoes that they have vata leather insoles , which is like an extra fatty vegetable tan leather that's usually seen on the high end bags like coach and Prada and KF Fredrick and stuff like that , that they went with this leather because it offers more stability and support than a lot of cheaper installs , even cheaper leather insoles .

And finally , the outsole is 30% recycled rub up , which is like a nice little bonus for sustainability .

Ok .

So for those of you on a budget , arguably the best common projects alternative under $100 is the Kirk from Digital first Menswear brand new public and it seems to deserve all of the praise that it has gotten over the past few years .

So it's available in a wide range of sizes .

Men's size 4 to 15 , including half sizes , which is pretty awesome .

The current leather sneaker comes with a tensile mesh foot bed .

So think like memory foam and that adds comfort and air flow to your step .

Now , on the quality spectrum , the leather is way nicer than something that you're going to find on say the Adidas Stan Smith , but it's smaller .

Yeah , sorry , but it's not luxury grade .

It's not like the same as obviously common projects or , or or even Oliver or Thursday .

But for the price , these are very durable and they can take a surprising amount of abuse before showing any significant signs of wear .

So if you are on a tighter budget , you should consider the New Republic finally for the last it is true that I think the New Republic makes the best substitute for common projects for under $100 .

Like new public looks the most like common projects of the sub $100 options that we've looked at .

But the Stan Smith is for sure the most popular sneaker .

I think of the entire list .

It is not as low profile as the other options in this video , but it is the cheapest at just $85 and it does the job as an iconic plain white sneaker that's been consistently popular for over 50 years .

Why is it so much cheaper ?

Well , I mean , it's made by Adidas .

It's a gigantic company .

And also interestingly , the shoe has a vegan upper these days , I believe it used to be leather .

But now 50% of the upper is recycled and the outsole is made from recycled rubber waste .

So it's a lot more sustainable than you'd think for a shoe this inexpensive and the shoe this popular that comes with such a giant brand .

The downsides are , I mean , it's not leather and it looks a little bit plasticky , you know , uh and you also don't get that low slung look of the common projects .

Uh and that low profile look at common projects makes it easy to pair with like dressier casual outfits .

But look it's 85 bucks , it's very good value .

And uh yeah , it's got an interesting story behind it and that's it for our list and of course , for people , the common projects that Kelly is low is the only option , nothing else will do .

But for the rest of us , I think a more affordable and possibly even better alternative is a smarter choice .

Yeah , I mean , believe me , I get like the appeal of really spending some extra money for a really iconic durable brand .

It does nonetheless be emphasizing that like common projects is very expensive , but it's not necessarily more durable than something at a lower price point , especially something like co which is like well over 100 bucks cheaper and really really comfortable .

Um but all these are really good options .

Just pick what goes best for you and what goes best for your outfits and what you can afford .

Don't go into credit card debt for a sneaker is all I'm saying .

That's not , that's not great .

And there are plenty of options you can get that look pretty much just as good .

Totally .

Be sure to check out Nick Channel .

Stride wise for more buying guides and product reviews .

If you have any questions , leave them down in the comments section .

Thank you as always for watching and until next time , stay stylish .