Merrell Water Shoes Review: Why We Love This Brand!

Traversing deep into your favourite River or lake this summer for some refreshing time off a hectic schedule? Great! You’ll want to get all your needed gear in top condition. While trekking poles, coolers, hydration packs and other accessories can easily come to mind, getting solid waterproof shoes are likely going to come last in the scheme of things. But sure enough, that could be a tripwire to ruin your outdoor fun. Water shoes are incredibly important in preventing unsightly conditions from popping up. You surely don’t want to have a so-so experience camping or swimming and that’s why we’ve got this review to steer you in pole position.

Getting a nice water shoe is even more crucial if rafting your favourite river or paddling a lake downtown fits your summer checklist. Yes, you can opt for casual shoes, but while they may of course not be overly bad. However, they come with their fair share of downsides. You may have to contend with longer drying periods which could predispose you to hotspots and blisters. And that’s urely not a particularly fun way to enjoy summer.

There are oodles of brands and waterproof shoes on the market, so getting a decent one for a sizzling summer is definitely a great way to keep things exhilarating all the way. Your legs are not just going to be firmly supported by a top quality and fast draining pair of waterproof shoes, you will also be preparing for an unrivalled rafting and paddling experience.

One such terrific brand you’ll want to give a shot is Merrell. With a huge collection of high end and awesomely designed water shoes, there’s likely a perfect fit for your water cruising experience as summer takes centre stage.

Merrell: How it all started

With a history dating back to 1981, Merrell has consistently grown over the years, producing brilliant and aesthetically pleasing pairs of water shoes for many water enthusiasts. The company – Merrell was started by John Schweizer and Clark Matis, both former Rossignol ski company executives who decided to dive into retailing of boots.

As a new startup, a pair of Merrell shoes sold at $500. However, the need for brand improvement and better quality shoes inspired Co-founder – Matis to redesign the shoes in a bid to make them more affordable without compromising the quality. New Merrell hiking shoes subsequently hit the market in 1983 and by the end of 1986, sales from the Merrell line snowballed rapidly, with the company selling about 250,000 boot pairs. The company was eventually sold off in 1987 to Karhu, who subsequently expanded the reach of Merrells and retailed the shoes at lower prices after moving the production to Asia.  The brand’s success didn’t wane as the savvy move led to sales hitting $4 million in 1988. Definitely not a bad start for what would eventually become one of the world’s leading producers of hiking boots.

The success of the company wasn’t in doubt as by the end of 1990, sales of Merrell shoes trumped an unprecedented $10 million dollars. This meant Merrell had to expand and reach an even wider coverage, and so it did with new branches of the company opening in the U.S, UK and many Scandinavian countries. The blossoming scale took a bigger leap, thumping a sky-high $20 million in sales from its collection of footwears. As a seemingly unending expansion of the brand continued, Merrell became truly universal, establishing its presence in over 20 countries before the end of the decade.

Following its success, the Merrell line was acquired in 1997 by Wolverine World Wide who subsequently introduced lighter Merrell shoes by introducing the Jungle Runner footwear. Modifications were made to the Jungle Runner as it didn’t garner much desired attention and popularity. This ultimately fuelled the introduction of the brand’s trademark “Jungle Moc.” which took the footwear market by storm. As buyers scrambled for pairs of the “Jungle Moc”, a staggering 3.5 million pairs of the new release was sold by 2002. Merrell literally went universal as the brand operated in over 150 countries by 2010, a feat which meant global sales almost trumped the $500 million mark in the same year.

Why is the brand so popular

Merrell has become first choice for many wet-weather adventurers for the right reasons. Given a robust history and user-centric designs, it was only going to be when and not if the brand was going to assume its position as the world’s leader in the water shoe industry. Another plus is the availability of diverse collections of water shoes for male and female water enthusiasts, so there’s basically a perfect product to complement your summer kit when taking some time off a hectic schedule. Merrell’s elegance oozes a blend of flexibility and ease of use as the shoes are engineered to allow easy water exit while letting clean and refreshing air in.

Delivering sublime products for equally competitive prices has been the stronghold of the Merrell line. With ownership of the brand changing a few times since its inception, a deep understanding of the market and unwavering commitment to delivering the best line of water shoes have unarguably been pivotal in propelling the brand to gain huge traction and popularity over the years.

With new brands and designs springing up the niche, it suffices to say that more superb and super brilliant Merrell Water shoes are in the offing. Want to check out the Merrel brand? The history behind the product structure and a little more peep into the brand? Well then, check out this video

Some popular Merrell water shoes for men

Product	Price Range	Our Rating	Buy
Merrell Men’s Vapor Glove 2 Trail Running Shoe	$$	4.6/5
Merrell Men’s Moab Waterproof Hiking Shoe	$$$	4.9/5
Merrell Moab Mid Waterproof Boot	$$	4.8/5
Merrell Men’s Moab Gore-Tex Waterproof Hiking Shoe	$$	4.7/5
Merrell Men’s All Out Blaze Sieve Water Shoe	$$$	4.9/5

The importance of the materials

Merrell shoes have an excellently good reputation, providing immense cushioning and lightweight design to match your outdoor activity. But there’s more to this overly simplified rational behind the Merrell line. Taking into cognizance the fact that not everybody fancies the same outdoor activity, Merrell shoes are designed to match whatever outdoor activity does the trick for you.

A handful of materials and design go into a Merrell shoe. At the very basic, tapered injected nylon and steel shanks are integrated to form a highly resistant and impervious combination for a water shoe. The brand’s inflex can also be modified to fit the intended use. Merrell shoes are sealed tightly from the elements, preventing water entry as you go paddling the river. The waterproof structure has a GORE-TEX membrane at its core. The brand also has its signature waterproof that comes at a relatively cheaper price. There is also the or M-Select™ DRY waterproof technology that fashions out ways of excluding water effectively and ensures you don’t have to call it a day when the clouds become heavy.

The Merrell line of shoes also a have superb Upper, Midsole and Outsole construction. The upper presents both synthetic and leather options. Leather quality affects the overall feel and perception of a footwear. And so Merrell has a good bunch of options for its leather design. The Reverse Full grain leather is extremely thick and the strongest of all. The Full Grain leather brings a glittering shine and has a smooth surface that deals excellently well with waterproof agents. Split Leather gives a softer feel and is the cheapest of all you can find. If you fancy additional tweaks, the leather can further be improved with wax or oil to enhance an even more stunning look. There are also Pigskin and Nubuck Leather options for the Upper part of Merrell’s line of water shoes. While the Nubuck leather reacts awesomely to pressing and embossing, Merrell’s Pigskin leather excellently resists stains and water infiltration with its sturdy and unique leather protector components.

A Merrell Synthetic Upper can either be ventilated or a waterproof synthetic leather. A ventilated upper is ultra-breathable and sensationally keeps out dirt and debris while the waterproof synthetic leather provides superb water resistance similar to traditional leathers.

Merrell’s Midsole is designed for utmost stability and an exclusive Air Cushion is provided that does a great job in absorbing shock while further enhancing stability.

The Outsole construction Of Merrell shoes are made from rubber and are only basically differentiated based on their stiffness level. Depending on your needs, there’s likely a Merrell outsole that’s perfect for you. A FIST scale provided by the brand is another way to determine which outsole will be best for your hiking needs. There is also a Heel brake that helps to prevent falling and sliding, a feature not commonly found in other brands.

Merrell shoes have Lasts – a metal, wood or synthetic material providing the form in which shoes are made – that are suitable for both women and men, providing the core structure for safe use.

The collection

From hiking to casual and work shoes, an exceedingly wide range of Merrell Footwears are available. All of which are available for men, women and kids of all ages and sizes. Before buying a footwear, you’ll want to consider any specifics to your foot. Merrell provides a Snug to get you an inch-perfect buy. Shoe categories at Merrells include Sandals, Fitness, Trail Running, Hiking and Slip-ons. Other footwear types from Merrell are Slip-ons as well as winter and casual boots.

The MOAB line of Merrell Shoes gained huge traction since its release, with the product gathering a lot of users. With a sturdy and top-notch design, Merrells MOABs don’t look like getting off the footwear scene anytime soon. Other popular Men footwear from the brand include the Chameleon Waterproof, Tetrex Crest Wrap, Trail Glove 4 Knit, Chameleon 7 Limit, Rant Discovery Lace Canvas, All Out Crush 2, and  Moab Adventure Lace Wide Width among others. Want to check out some more Merrell minimalist collections. Check out the video

In the Clothing space, Merrell provides a rich collection of Jackets, Midlayers, Shirts and Dresses. All of which are available for men and women. Merrell accessories include insoles, socks, bags, shoe care, as well as hats, gloves and scarves.

Some popular Merrell water shoes for women

Product	Price Range	Our Rating	Buy
Merrell Women’s Vapor Glove 2 Barefoot Trail Running Shoe	$$	4.6/5
Merrell Women’s All Out Blaze Sieve Water Shoe	$$$	4.9/5
Merrell Women’s Encore Breeze 3 Slip-On Shoe	$$	4.8/5
Merrell Women’s Bare Access Arc 3 Trail Running Shoe	$$	4.7/5
Merrell Women’s Moab 2 Waterproof Hiking Shoe	$$$	4.9/5

Merrell for Kids

Got a big kid in the house? No worries, Merrell has an amazing collection of footwears and other accessories for your kids to get in the groove too. There are sandals and Hiking boots all available for kids. And if the Jungle Moc and Waterproof collection sounds more like it for your kid, there are oodles of them, all yours in the taking.

Merrell footwears come in different sizes and multiple colours, ensuring you have a best match if you consider red footwears unappealing or have any other sort of reservation when it comes to colours. With a wide and deeply rooted history of making customers get the best product, the Merrell brand has no doubt been able to greatly achieve its goal – Making people get out and have some more fun outdoors. But it doesn’t end there, Merrell collections have also expanded to cover other categories outside the footwear and water shoe space, demonstrating the robustness of the brand. In the accessories department, Merrell has a plethora of socks, backpacks, caps and footbeds for you to cash in on.

Merrell water shoes are also one of the most competitively priced out there. And given the quality and great comfort provided by the wide range of shoes, it’s not hard to see why individuals go the Merrell way when footwear and Water shoes specifically are included in the shopping list. There are lots of options and sporting decisions to consider when going outdoors, but you arguably won’t find many brands matching the towering success of Merrell Water Shoes when stacking up Quality and efficiency. So, for a fun, engaging, wreck-free hiking and paddling experience this summer, you sure can count on Merrell to cap off an amazing outing an exquisite and delightful footwear you can find anywhere on the market.