The Row flip-flops elevate a summer essential

The Row continues its elevation of the ubiquitous beach sandal with these flip-flops – a style set to be everywhere this summer

By
published
in Buying Guides
The Row Flip Flops
Flip-flop sandals with padded leather footbeds, £920, by The Row (enquire therow.com)
(Image credit: Photography by Neil Godwin, art direction by Cindy Parthonnaud)

In the 20 years since Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen founded The Row in 2006, the pair have proved increasingly adept at reimagining the quotidian in ultra-luxurious style. This is particularly true when it comes to their sought-after footwear, with everything from the humble jelly shoe – reminiscent of those sold in seaside towns to traverse rocky beaches and coves – to spa slippers and hiking sandals getting The Row upgrade (and thus making them ubiquitous within style circles, which have long looked towards the Olsens as fashion soothsayers).

The same is true of this riff on the flip-flop sandal, a style that the pair have presented in various iterations in recent seasons. Evoking the hardy beach sandals of the 1990s, this latest version is reworked in the pair’s considered, pared-back style, complete with a grosgrain strap, leather toe divider and a soft leather footbed – robust enough to prove their utility all summer long, whether padding along hot city streets or wandering beachside.

The Row Spring 2025 flip flops

The Row has featured flip-flops in numerous collections, including this viral pair from the brand’s spring 2025 collection

(Image credit: The Row)

Indeed, the thong flip-flop – a once-derided summertime accessory – will continue to prove ubiquitous in 2026’s warmer months, favoured for its clean, minimal line and synonymy with the 1990s and early 2000s, an era which, in fashion at least, proves ever-present.

Alongside The Row, the flip-flop appeared across the S/S 2026 collections: at Pierpaolo Piccioli’s debut for Balenciaga, flocked thong flip-flops came with a padded sole and jewel adornment (the illusion was that of a 1990s toe ring); at Prada men’s, they were a hyper-colourful riff on the rubber-and-foam beach flip-flop (think: Prada’s take on the Havaiana, rendered in leather); while at Auralee, they came with equally brightly hued soles, a testament to designer Ryota Iwai’s reputation as a master colourist.

A version of this article appears in the June 2026 Travel Issue of Wallpaper*, available in print, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today.

Prada runway at Milan Fashion Week Men’s S/S 2026

For men and women, flip-flops appeared across the S/S 2026 runways – including this pair at the Prada menswear show last June

(Image credit: Courtesy of Prada)

Shop the story

Jack Moss
Fashion & Beauty Features Director

Jack Moss is the Fashion & Beauty Features Director at Wallpaper*, having joined the team in 2022 as Fashion Features Editor. Previously the digital features editor at AnOther and digital editor at 10 Magazine, he has also contributed to numerous international publications and featured in ‘Dazed: 32 Years Confused: The Covers’, published by Rizzoli. He is particularly interested in the moments when fashion intersects with other creative disciplines – notably art and design – as well as championing a new generation of international talent and reporting from international fashion weeks. Across his career, he has interviewed the fashion industry’s leading figures, including Rick Owens, Pieter Mulier, Jonathan Anderson, Grace Wales Bonner, Christian Lacroix, Kate Moss and Manolo Blahnik.