The Rise of Saucony: How a 125-Year-Old Running Brand Became Streetwear's Favourite Trainer

A few years ago, Saucony was a brand serious runners knew and most other people didn't. Now it's sitting alongside Asics and New Balance as one of the names driving the whole retro-runner trend. Here's how that happened — and why the ProGrid Omni 9 in particular has become the shoe everyone suddenly seems to own.

A running brand, not a fashion brand

Saucony's story goes back to 1898, making it one of the oldest running shoe manufacturers still going. For most of its history, that's exactly what it was: a performance running brand with a loyal following among people who actually ran, rather than a name you'd see on a fashion moodboard.

That heritage is actually the point. Saucony never redesigned its archive shoes to look retro — it's re-releasing designs that were genuinely built for performance running in the first place. The chunky sole, the layered mesh, the visible support structure — none of that is decoration. It's actual running-shoe engineering that happens to look exactly right for 2026.

The ProGrid Omni 9's second life

The Omni 9 was originally launched in 2010 as a stability running shoe — built around Saucony's GRID cushioning system, with a rubberised cage around the midfoot for support and a mesh upper for breathability. It did its job quietly for over a decade.

Then, starting in the early 2020s, it found a completely new audience. As the retro-runner wave took off — the same trend that pulled Asics' Gel Kayano 14 and Gel-1130 back into the spotlight — the Omni 9 got rediscovered for exactly the reasons it was built: genuine cushioning, real support, and a silhouette that looks unmistakably like early-2000s running gear.

Since then, Saucony has leaned into it properly. Limited collaborations with names like Starcow and Jae Tips, exclusive colourways through retailers like END. and Foot Locker, and dedicated variants — an Armor edition with rubberised overlays and a tougher, street-ready build, a Premium version in suede and leather, and a faded Ombré edition — have all kept the shoe in constant rotation without it ever feeling like the same release twice.

Why it fits right now

The Omni 9 landed at exactly the right moment. It ticks every box the current trend calls for:

• Genuine heritage — it's not a fashion brand borrowing running-shoe aesthetics, it's an actual 2010 performance runner
• The right silhouette — chunky, technical, visibly supportive, in the same lane as the Gel Kayano 14 and Gel-1130
• Room to collect — between general releases and collabs, there's always a new colourway worth chasing
• Comfort that backs it up — reviewers consistently note it fits true to size with genuinely supportive cushioning, not just a shoe that looks the part

Where it sits next to Asics

If you've read our Gel Kayano 14 vs Gel-1130 breakdown, the Omni 9 slots in as a genuine third option rather than a copy of either. It has its own construction, its own cushioning system, and its own identity — which is exactly why people are increasingly building rotations that mix Saucony in with their Asics rather than picking one brand and sticking to it.

For sizing, the Omni 9 fits true to size for most people — check our UK trainer size guide if you're not sure where you land.

Shop the current Saucony ProGrid Omni 9 range at Sourcedinuk, with free UK delivery on orders over £200 and 14-day hassle-free returns.