Fashionably FIT Survey

When Sophie at SportsShoes offered a pair of trainers for me to try out as part of  the 'Fashionably FIT' survey, I jumped at the chance. I was in an accident over the summer where I badly broke my leg, so it came at a time where I was learning to walk again and now where I am learning to run. 

Now, all this came about because Jan Moir (of Daily Mail fame) wrote an article slagging Katherine Jenkins for wearing make up during the London Marathon. Katherine Jenkins responded to this saying that she wasn't wearing make up, but for me this is not the point. What right does Jan Moir have to put her down if she was? This should be a personal choice and we should not be judged on this. 

Make up and fashion within sport is no bad thing; it can be used as a form of expression as with the Swedish athletes: Emma Green Tregaro and Mao Hjelmer who wore rainbow nail polish in protest of Russia's laws banning "gay propaganda".

 On to the shoes... they sent me a lovely pair of New Balance WR10V2 running shoes, which are probably the most beautiful pair of trainers I have ever seen. I don't know much about shoe science but these are barefoot/minimalist running shoes, they are ridiculously comfortable and really helped me to correct my walking. They are also, of course, non-leather and animal-free. The first few days I did not want to take them off and they have become a fixture, not just for sport but for everyday wear. 

Why I personally wont shop at Arcadia Stores

The Arcadia Group, known for such shops as Topshop, Topman, Dorothy Perkins, Miss Selfridges, BHS, Burton, Evans and Wallis. These are the shops that dominate the British high street. But there is something that doesn't sit right with me about them... and that's tax avoidance.

Each year the majority owner of the Arcadia Group, Philip Green avoids hundreds of millions of pounds in tax, which he would have to pay if the company wasn't in the name of his wife who is a Monaco resident. At the same time the public sector, including Education and Health are having to make huge spending cuts to save the country money.

I don't doubt that the Arcadia Group are going some way to look at recycling and their impact on the environment which they talk about here, I can't help but feel that this is a gimmick and that maybe the issues they take in consideration are the ones that benefit them financially. Especially when they are repeatedly accused of using sweatshops to produce their clothing.

Another thing that doesn't sit right with me is that the government does nothing to stop this and is happy to take from the public sector when a lot more money could be added to the economy from the UK's richest. I fail to believe David Cameron saying that 'we're all in this together' in regard to the UK debt crisis, when clearly not all of us are.

I am not going to pretend I am hot on politics, my views may be considered naively constructed; and I also realise that the Arcadia Group is not the only issue when it comes to tax avoidance in Britain, but I can't help but feel that putting money into the pocket of these household name stores is completely corrupt. I personally feel by adding to their profits I am part of the problem and it questions my whole value base.