Skate Shoes come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Here is some info to help make sense of it all. Materials: Leather, suede, nubuck, synthetic, and canvas. Suede is the most popular material mainly due to the surface friction it creates with your griptape. Even though they last longer, rubber toe caps make it harder to skate because they grip the board more than suede.
Construction: In addition to the material a shoe is made from there are several other things to consider when shopping. Cushioning is major factor in the board feel you will achieve with a particular style of shoe. Most shoes are made with a gum rubber sole, a thin layer of padding and then an insole. Some shoes like the ES and Emerica with G2 have a full layer of gel from heel to toe without sacrificing board feel. Shoes that are built with stroebel construction are of a higher quality and usually will cost a little more, but your feet will thank you!
Sizing: Skate shoes will fit slightly different than regular tennis shoes, since they have a more padding in the tongue and heel collar. So if you are wearing a running shoe and want to buy skate shoes buy a half size bigger. Women can buy Men's shoes if you scale down the sizing, so if you wear a size 7.5 Womens then you would wear a size 6 mens. Kids shoes are built on a mens sizing scale and therefore you would size down for a womens size.
