AIBU to refuse to spend £80 on trainers for a 15 year old?

[anydaynow]

Or am I just being nostalgic for the days of buying a £30 pair of Clark's classic with lights that go off when you run in them???

His feet keep growing damn it... what do people normally spend? Obviously it's branded trainer and I can see that there a lots even more expensive but... Is £80 reasonable??

Clearly I'm a cheapskate, I'd probably not spend that on trainers for either of mine and their feet have stopped growing. A fifteen year old whose feet may not have stopped would be told hard cheese here I'm afraid!

For the poster comparing with young children's feet growing fast- teens can outgrow shoes every bit as fast, and be just as hopeless at not telling you. I think my son's feet went from size 5 to 11 in just over 18 months. He managed age=shoe size in trainers before he stopped at size 12.

@EveryLifeHasASoundtrack I think I must have got off lightly yes... not sure how.

If you can afford it. I would but I'd never get into debt buying brand name stuff.

That's nothing really
Some of the Nikes are 150 plus and yes this mug has paid it for her 15 year old

I think £120 is going rate for branded adult size trainers- -‘urging over that and mind contribute

Long shot but if you qualify for a blue light card, you might get some discount at JD Sports.

He'll probably wear them a lot though.
If he's willing to chip in, I would take a contribution.
It's expensive but not extortionate but probably important to your son.

My daughter is 12 and she wears either Adidas or converse.

Adidas are £80 although I do try and pick them up in sales. Very sometimes have 20% off.

Her feet have just about finished growing I think - wel they grow very slowly now so they do last.

£80 is reasonable. Mines usually over £100

Well it depends they’re for. Is it a birthday present? If so, then ok. Or are for school or just for knocking about at home? Then for school, go to Decathlon. For home use, I would expect some pocket money being put towards them.

That will be the cheaper end of the scale too. They cost usually between £120-160 for my 15 year old.

Very standard price for trainers. I would say £100 is about average. My 2 yo’s trainers coat anywhere from £30-£50. The main question is, can you afford it? If you can then get them for him.

Cost*

That price sounds right.

Brace yourself for a repeat in a few months if he's growing though.

I spent about $800 on footwear for DS around age 13-14. His feet went from kid size to the biggest mens' size you can buy in a shoe shop in the space of 15 months.

A friend's DS had feet that kept growing until he was into special order territory - basketball player shoe sizes. The kid also outgrew clothes while they were on the washing machine.

Why do 3 year olds need Adidas trainers?

Part and parcel of having teenagers I’ve got two of them and recently bought clothes for a 2 year old in Morrisons recently and was stunned at how cheap little children’s clothes can be I’d forgotten

Standard for decent trainers, branded or no. Good footwear costs a lot of money these days.

My 17 year olds wear Nike TNs that cost around £150. But I buy them 2nd hand on eBay or Depop for half that, barely worn.

I should be so lucky! Even basic Nike seem to come in at about £120 and I'm being asked (many times over) by DD-stb16 to consider fashion brand shoes at the £3-400 mark - and they're "only" trainers. This is more than twice the price I've ever paid for (mens leather) shoes in my life. The real con seems to be "limited edition" shoes that sell out online in microseconds and are then resold at huge profits.

Thanks for all your responses. It's interesting to know what others see as reasonable or not. I think I get caught between being tight and spoiling... it always seems like a fine line and I'm never quite sure which way I swing

And @filka... now you mention it DD has been showing me trainers at £250 upwards recently so maybe I should quit while I'm winning

If your DS is growing fast you may be able to sell his 'barely worn' shoes online and recoup part of the cost.

My 14 yo wears Air Force ones which are £85. He either has them as a birthday gift or he puts some money towards. They last him ages and as he's the same size as me I get to wear them when he has a new pair

My ds sells his old trainers, that he's worn about 3 times... They all cost around £100...at least he gets something back.

What trainers is he buying op?

If you can afford it, I'd get them!