It was noted that the design of most running shoes was hurting runners more than helping them. Elevated heels promote high-impact landing and narrow toe boxes squeeze the toes out of their natural position. Read Our Story

What began as experimental shoe alterations has transformed into the only shoe company to provide a cushioned Zero Drop™ platform and FootShape™ toe box. This innovative combo promotes low-impact technique and allows your feet to remain in a natural, relaxed position across every terrain.

While filming customers at their running store in the Rocky Mountains, a disturbing trend was noticed, traditional shoes were encouraging high-impact landing and poor posture. Impact force was less and posture was better when running barefoot. Realising the only difference was the excess heel thickness of their shoes, modification began, creating balanced shoes from heel to toe, coined as “Zero Drop”.

While testing our Zero Drop theory, incredible results were immediate with our staff and customers. It helped them return to running with a relaxed, comfortable and natural running experience. Zero Drop was just one of many steps taken to return the runner’s foot to its natural position. Additional research made it clear that a shoe needed to be developed to let the toes relax and spread out naturally, instead of squeezing them inside the narrow toe box of virtually every running shoe. Zero Drop platform was paired with a wider, FootShape™ toe box, allowing the toes to relax and spread out naturally for more stability and comfort.

With the help of some of the best minds in the running industry, Altra was started to bring a better running experience to the masses. Award-winning technology and rapidly growing customer base have vaulted Altra into a Top 10 running shoe brand in only a few years.

"To our team of Ultra Marathoners and Triathletes, running is our lives and each day is a ceaseless pursuit to make running fun and healthy for everyone. We’ve seen our shoes return people to running and help them accomplish things they never thought were possible."