These Ballet Flats by French Brand Repetto Are Selling Out

I walked by a shop window in Paris not once, not twice, but four times this past May, eyeing a pair of black Repettos signature Cendrillon flats (AKA, the gold standard of ballet flats). I promised myself Id buy them as soon as sweaty-feet season was over, but now I just might be too late.

I walked by a shop window in Paris not once, not twice, but four times this past May, eyeing a pair of black Repetto’s signature Cendrillon flats (AKA, the gold standard of ballet flats). I promised myself I’d buy them as soon as sweaty-feet season was over, but now I just might be too late. Thanks to personal stylist Allison Bornstein, whom you’ve probably seen on TikTok sharing her three-word method to finding your personal style, the shoes keep selling out in nearly every size.

To be fair, I can’t (and would never!) blame her — I’m not sure when exactly the flats started selling out; with balletcore on the rise, they could have been disappearing before Bornstein’s stamp of approval. But what I do know is people love Bornstein’s taste (she has hundreds of thousands of followers, after all), and in her early September newsletter, she selected Repetto’s Cendrillon ballerinas as one of her “favorite summer to fall footwear” picks. “I love Repetto shoes because you buy them once and have them forever,” she wrote.

Ssense

Shop now: $285; ssense.com

Ssense

Shop now: $325; ssense.com

Repetto, founded in 1947, originally crafted buttery soft shoes exclusively for ballerinas — until a special request came from Brigitte Bardot. She wanted a pair of ballet flats not for pliéing, but for just roaming around the city. Founder Rose Repetto accepted the request, and designed the Cendrillon Ballerinas. The style is now 75 years old, and has garnered a celebrity fanbase, including Kate Moss, who has been wearing the flats consistently since at least 2006, Karlie Kloss, and Alexa Chung. And it makes sense — the shoes are classic.

“A pair of straight-leg denim, a tee, a blazer, and ballet flats is such a timeless look,” Bornstein wrote in her newsletter. It’s also a super practical look that can take you (comfortably by foot) from work meetings to dinner. But, if Repetto’s Cendrillon ballerinas are out of your price range — they cost anywhere between $285 to $325 — it’s super easy to get a similar look for less. US-based company Bloch is similar to Repetto in that it started out with making shoes for ballerinas, then expanded into ballet flats for everyday wear. Or, you can opt for the even more affordable route with Amazon customer-loved styles like the Amazon Essentials Ballet Flat (which has over 32,000 five-star ratings) or these Trary flats, starting at $22.

Amazon

Shop now: $89; amazon.com

Amazon

Shop now: $22; amazon.com

Amazon

Shop now: $27–$30; amazon.com

But beware — now that ballet flats have received Bornstein’s stamp of approval, every Repetto dupe is starting to sell out, too. Pick up your size (if you’re lucky) in a bow-topped ballet flat now, before it’s too late.

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