vans's history

Vans is an American based manufacturer of sneakers, skateboarding shoes, BMX shoes, snowboarding boots and other shoe types catering primarily to the skateboarder/BMXer/snowboarder/surfer youth market. They also sell apparel and accessories catering to this same youth market.

On March 16, 1966, at 704 E. Broadway, in Anaheim, California, Paul Van Doren and three partners opened up their first store. The Van Doren Rubber Company was unique in that it manufactured shoes and sold them directly to the public. On that first morning, 12 customers purchased Vans deck shoes, which are now known as Authentic. The shoes made that day were ready for pick-up in the afternoon.
The company continued to grow into the 1970s. During this period they also produced wool lined canvas and rubber mukluks under contract to the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Air Force. Skateboarders who liked Vans rugged make-up and sticky sole were seen sporting Vans all over Southern California in the early 1970s. In 1975, the Vans #95, known today as the Era was designed by Tony Alva and Stacy Peralta. With a padded collar and different color combinations the Era became the shoe of choice for a generation of skateboarders. In 1979, Vans introduced the #44 shoe, and with the help of skateboarders and BMX riders the Vans Slip-On became all the rage in Southern California. By the end of the 1970s, Vans had 70 stores in California and sold through dealers both nationally and internationally.

As the 1980s rolled around, Paul Van Doren began to take a lesser role in the companies’ activities. Over this period, Vans started to create shoes for a number of sports from skateboarding, wakeboarding, motor cross, to surfing in an effort to compete with large athletic shoe companies. Vans Slip-Ons gained international attention and appeal when they were worn by Sean Penn in the 1982, iconic youth film Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Although Vans core shoes were selling well, the wide range of products that the company now offered had drained the companies’ resources, and with Vans not able to overcome its debt they were forced to file for bankruptcy in 1983.
After three years, Vans had paid back all creditors and emerged from bankruptcy. In 1988 Vans original owners sold out to an investment banking firm. The company has been sold several times since; most recently for $396 million in 2004 to Greensboro, N.C.-based VF Corp. Steve Van Doren, the son of co-founder Paul Van Doren, is still with the company, as is his sister Cheryl and his daughter Kristy.

Vans closed their Orange, California factory and began manufacturing footwear overseas in 1994. In 1994, Vans sponsored the Inaugural Triple Crown series which developed into the Vans Triple Crown series. In 1998, Vans opened a 46,000-square-foot (4,300 m2), indoor-outdoor Vans Skate park at the Block in Orange County and in 2002 an enclosed skatepark was opened in the Festival Bay Mall on International Drive in Orlando, Florida. In 2000 and 2001, Forbes recognized Vans as one of "America’s Best Small Companies." In 2004, Vans launched the Vans Customs on their website. This allowed customers to log onto the Vans website and design their own pair of Vans Slip-ons, mid-cuts, or high-tops. Nowadays, it allows for the design of custom Era, Slip-On,Old Skool, and 106 Vulcanized shoes.
Vans has been the primary sponsor of the Warped Tour music festival since 1995. It is also holds the naming rights to BOWL-A-RAMA Bondi, Sydney, Australia, and not San Luis Obispo, CA

Converse History

History

The Converse Rubber Company opened for business in 1908 by Marquis M. Converse, in Massachusetts. Marquis was in the 30s, and have some previous experience as a manager at a footwear manufacturing company. Initially, Converse shoes just make galoshes and seasonal. Nine years later, however, they decided to make athletic shoes so they can have a continuous production throughout the year. As basketball grows in popularity, the Converse company wanted to provide its players with good basketball shoes to accompany their sport. The Converse All Stars is the mass production of the first basketball shoe in America. As a high school basketball players in Indiana, began to wear Converse Chuck Taylor All Stars and became very fond of them.

Shoes were not very popular until they were adopted as the Chuck Taylor shoe choice. He was impressed with the design so that he became a leading salesman in the shoe. After Chuck Taylor Converse employed by the Corporation, he suggested a new way to sew the shoes together provide more support but also flexibility. He also suggested to add a patch for the name brand. When Chuck's advice proved themselves adequate, the shoes have a name now and Chuck Taylor's signature on the All Stars ankle patch. At first the shoes were only in earth tones with black trim, but in 1920 they came in a black canvas or leather style
Another change is the switch to a nonslip soles. Although the most popular classic black, Chuck Taylor himself known to prefer unbleached white high-top (known in his day as the only "white"). The Converse soon have its own league of their industry in which Chuck is one of the coaches and players. Chuck Taylor to travel all the time promoting and advertizing shoes and run a basketball clinic. As the popularity of Chuck rise, reaching more opportunities to create a broad theme and design. In the 1930s, Chuck designed high top blue and white with red trim for the Olympics in 1936 (first-year basketball become Olympic Sport). Chuck Taylor also managed to be a fitness consultant soldiers during World War II. Soon after, the high peak white into the "official" shoes to the United States armed forces. Then in 1957 on the low All Stars was created to look more casual
Consumers demanded more variety from the shoe - particularly with respect to the color to match basketball teams - so colored and patterned shoelaces became popular to complement the two colors, black and white, available before 1966. After that, the more colors and styles became available. Low-top or "Oxford", high-top, and then knee-high, versions produced. Offered more material for construction, including leather, suede, vinyl, denim, and hemp. Some versions of the shoe is offered with no ropes, raised not by elastic. This new version of the shoe is also co-designed by Chuck Taylor.

In 1968 Chuck Taylor went to the Basketball Hall of Fame. Only a year later, Chuck Taylor died of a heart attack in Florida. A full biography of Chuck Taylor was published by Indiana University Press in March 2006 under the title Chuck Taylor, All Star: True Story of the Most Popular Man Behind Athletic Shoe in History, with a foreword by the retired college basketball coach Dean Smith. During the 1970s and 1980s, the Converse All Stars became very fashionable. Even adults who have grown up wearing them, refusing to give them. Shoes that are part of the hippie movement is accompanied by musicians and their bands. The hippies often wear shoes as a mismatch to promote their individuality. Converse All Stars are no longer just a basketball shoe, but also shoes for casual wear again that began to represent rebellion and freedom

Converse Travel story:

1908
M. Marquis Converse opened the Converse Rubber Shoe Company for business.

1910
Converse producing 4,000 shoes daily.

1915
Converse canvas tennis shoe business increased, doubled in 1918.

1917
Converse All Star was introduced, the first performance basketball shoe in the era of Converse.

1918
Charles H. "Chuck" says Taylor, an All American high school players who will then be in accordance with the original Celtics, Buffalo Germans and Akron Firestones, the couple's first All Star shoes

1921
Converse Chuck Taylor joined, he was hired as a salesman and endorser.

1923
Converse Chuck Taylor add a signature to All Star Patch.Converse customizes shoes for the basketball team's first all African American, New York Renaissance.

1930
nation's interest to promote basketball, Converse became a synonym for basketball.

1933
Converse company aquires Family Stone.

1935
Jack Purcell, a champion of the world famous badminton, court performance, shoe design durable.
Chuck created the modern basketball, stitch less leather ball designed to improve the sport by a truer bounce.

1936
Played basketball for the first time as an official Olympic sport.

1942
Converse sports production changes and begin producing A6 Flying Boot, which is used by groups throughout the U.S. Army Air.
1949
American Basketball Association and National League to join the NBA.

1962
Converse develop low-cut version of an All Star, called "Oxford".

1966
Converse started adding color choice in "basic black and white" shoes Chuck Taylor All Star basketball.

1968
Chuck get a place in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

1971
Ths Stone family sold Converse to Eltra Corporation Company.

1974
Converse introduced the "One Star", a low-cut performance shoe for basketball.

1976
Julius Erving support Converse.

1981
Converse develop the industry's first biomechanical laboratory.

1984
Converse was the official sponsor of the Olympics 1984.

1985
Converse investment paid off, when presented high biomechanics laboratory bearing system technology first.
Years later Converse started to sink.

1986
Converse released "The Weapon" basketball shoe. Also manufactured in many color schemes to customize team color basketball team, has been available in both high-and low-cut top varieties.

1996
Produces 5.2 million pairs of shoes in the United States.

1997
Announced that more than 550 million pairs of "Chuck Taylor" All Star shoes produced; believe the record industry. Produces 7.5 million pairs of shoes in the United States.

2001
Sales dropped and the company was forced to file bankruptcy.
The factory in the United States to close, and therefore manufacturing in the United States is not possible anymore.
April - change of ownership from public to private hands; $ 117,000,000 paid to the bankruptcy court against their debt. July - First "Chuck Taylor" All Star shoes made in Indonesia arrived in the United States.

2003
Nike makes bid to buy Converse for the amount of $ 305,000,000, and successful, change the owner of Nike to Converse