They say you should spend money on your shoes and your bed, because if you’re not in one, then you’re in the other.

And even if ‘they’ turns out to be the marketing department at Common Projects, there is some common sense to it. Shoes are, after all, the foundation of any outfit. A good pair can lift your look; and a bad pair will drag it down. Not only that, but well-made shoes will last better in the long run. Assuming you don’t actually run in them, that is.

But unless your footwear budget exceeds Carrie Bradshaw’s, you’ll want to sink the cash you have into the most solid options possible. The ones that will give you more mileage than Sir Ian Botham doing a charity walk with The Proclaimers. That you can almost never put a foot wrong with.

With that in mind, we’ve corralled the most indefatigable workhorses around – and they’re all leather, because if your shoes aren’t leather then you aren’t really trying hard enough. These five flexible pairs are guaranteed to deliver maximum return on investment, so prepare to downsize your shoe cupboard – and maybe rent the reclaimed space out on Airbnb.

1. Minimal White Trainers

First off, they’re white, which goes with everything. Or will do as long as you keep them clean: battered trainers will kick smart looks to the curb quicker than you can say “crap nightclub bouncer”.

A minimal design also affords you maximum styling options. Again, if you think about the ‘cleanness’ of a suit and shirt, a trainer with pared-back detailing is just more in step. It’s a similar rule for texture: rougher textures are – generally speaking – informal, while smooth fabrics look dressier. Too many bells and whistles on your sneaks will sound an off note. And they won’t be good for sneaking either.

Which is why leather trainers are smartest. They’re smoother, shinier and therefore more formal than canvas. Plus they’re easier to keep clean (see above). Leather trainers also tend to be chunkier, which balances out the top-heaviness of tailored clothing or bulkier jackets like an on-trend shearling bomber.