It was day one of my summer holiday when the ribbing started. “What’s going on mate, are you a chef?” quipped my friends, gesturing at the black clogs from a famous German brand on my feet. It was my comeuppance: in London the day before I had questioned a stylist friend on her Havaianas flip-flops. I believe I said, “Are you wearing them ironically or do you actually like how they look?”See, summer is the season of the sandals wars. Warm-weather shoes inspire more ire than most other fashion items and each year a different model dominates. Recently Adidas and Birkenstock have overrun the beaches of Europe with slides and Arizona sandals respectively. These German titans are being challenged by America’s Tevas and Japan’s Suicokes, whose riffs on the frankly hideous Reef Velcro sandals are proving popular.Yet it looks like Brazil’s most famous fashion brand might have the next word: after a couple of years of slumping sales, Havaianas (and similar thong-sandals by other brands) are tip-toeing back into fashion. The rubber flip-flops were sported by a number of industry folk at the recent summer menswear shows, a harbinger of trends that will soon become mainstream. By next season we’ll all be shoving them into our beach totes.