Summary

These shoes feel sturdy and are well-made. They are decent, all-around running shoes that offer cushioning from both the sole and insole. I particularly liked the springy feel from the extra forefoot cushioning. Indeed, Relance translates to Relaunch.

Eco: The company’s eco-credentials are based on the reduced waste from the industrial knitting process used to produce the upper. There are also other eco-savings by siting the production in the EU rather than shipping shoes en masse from Asia by sea. To me, the biggest draw was the certainty that French-made shoes will not use the exploitative labour practices that apparel companies seem to regularly get caught supporting.

At 355g/shoe, these are not super-light shoes as an average running shoe weighs just under 300g. However, these are perfectly fine for your normal weekly training.

An 8mm heel-to-toe drop is on the lower side of normal and might favour faster runners but such a drop will discourage those of you wanting to be kinder to your calves.

The tread pattern seems to wear well and offered grip in all weathers.

Overall I enjoyed the Relance experience but the colour was too bright for me.