norda: the Montreal brand putting trail runners in Dyneema

At norda, the upper of the shoes is woven from Dyneema, a polyethylene fibre found in bulletproof vests and motorcycle helmets, according to Canadian Running Magazine, and which the brand says is up to fifteen times stronger than steel at equal weight. With this material, which it sets against traditional mesh or knit uppers, the Montreal house has carved out a place in trail running. Its models carry numbers rather than names: 000, 001A, 002, 003, 005, 008, 055.

A Montreal brand

norda is a Canadian brand, designed and developed in Montreal. According to Canadian Running Magazine, it launched its first shoe in 2021. Its co-founder and director, Nick Martire, tells Hypebeast he has been making shoes for twenty-five years, and likes car comparisons: “We are here to build Lamborghinis,” he tells Canadian Running Magazine, adding that a product that is not the best cannot carry the norda name. The head of design is Louis-Martin Tremblay.

The brand’s team of runners, called 665, helped develop several models: in 2024, its athletes ran for eight months with prototypes of the 001 fitted with a new Vibram rubber, before the brand adopted it for the 005. According to Nick Martire, the athletes’ feedback was unanimous.

A range written in numbers

According to the brand, the names follow a numbering inspired by the Fibonacci sequence, which expresses its “essentialist” philosophy: each model has one use and is nothing more than it needs to be.

The 000 is designed for moving through alpine terrain, from trail running to down-climbing. The 001A is the reference model of the range, an ultra-distance shoe for training as much as racing; there is also a 001 G+ Spike fitted with carbide spikes for snow and ice. The 002 is lower, to feel technical terrain. The 003 is a laceless approach shoe that moves from hiking to running. The 005 is the race-day shoe. The 008 is a recovery sandal, and the 055 an all-terrain shoe for ultra-distance efforts.

Dyneema, Arnitel, Vibram

norda’s know-how lies in the choice of materials. The uppers are woven from bio-based Dyneema, which the brand calls bio-circular and which, according to Canadian Running Magazine, avoids the need for reinforcements: the material is strong in itself. The midsoles are technical foams; the 005’s is pure Arnitel, a choice Hypebeast presents as a first, brands usually using it only in limited proportion. The outsoles are designed with Vibram: the 005 introduces the Megagrip Elite rubber.

The brand also claims that its winter shoes rely on a technology awarded a Nobel Prize, with no further detail.

What the brand stands for

For norda, durability is the most concrete form of environmental responsibility: the brand writes that every shoe is made from the best components, because real durability, it says, is that of a product that lasts. Nick Martire points out in Canadian Running Magazine that 22 billion shoes end up in landfill every year, and that the best the brand can do is make a product that lasts longer. He adds that no shoe can be entirely recycled into another.

Right now

The 005, released on 13 March 2025 according to Hypebeast, remains the brand’s flagship shoe. It now comes in several colours for men and for women. In late August 2026, the shop put online a collection made with Black Diamond: the 000, but also a bag, running poles, caps and T-shirts. The 055 has also been offered in new colours since this summer.

For readers in Switzerland

The brand’s online shop lists Switzerland among its countries, with a display in Swiss francs and a French-language version. The brand also publishes a list of twenty-eight Swiss retailers, from Bulle to Scuol and from La Tour-de-Peilz to Zurich.