Learn the history of Sneakers

Get to know the history of Sneakers!

A few years ago we called them sneakers or sneakers, and today they are proudly called “sneakers”. In this article, we’ll explore the interesting and intricate history of sneakers, and we’ll pass plenty of famous companies and brands along the way. are you ready?
The first nucleus of this popular shoe model was the person of Wait Webster. It was he who in 1832 was the first to patent the rubber sole of the shoe.
Initially, sneakers took the form of shallow, canvas shoes with a rubber sole. They were often used during hiking, which contributed to calling this type of shoes “tramp” from the word wanderer and wanderer. It was this name that was polonized by Poles and changed to “sneakers” so popular in Poland. Due to the fact that very similar shoes were produced in Poland from 1927 by the Polish Rubber Industry, they were sometimes also called pepegs.
However, in order to maintain the proper chronology of events, we have to go back to 1916 for a moment. It was then that the first significant brand producing sneakers – KEDS – was founded. This brand exists to this day and still produces shoes.

The beginnings of the company

However, the shoes we now know from store shelves and which have become the icon of sneakers were invented and created in 1917 by Marquis M. Converse. Previously, Mr. Marquise ran a tire manufacturing company, but he decided to re-industry and bet everything on one card. The result was the appearance of converses, but they were not so popular from the very beginning. Initially, it was just one of many variations of the popular “sneakers”. Only six years after the start of production, i.e. in 1923, the company decided to cooperate with the legendary Charles “Chuck” H. Taylor, who was a player of the Akron Firestones team. This collaboration changed the lives of both Marquis Convers and Charles Taylor.
It is not entirely clear how these two men met. The fact is, however, that “Chuck” was a very keen athlete. Not only was he a great basketball player, but he also wanted to have a real impact on the development of this sport. It was Chuck who invented the first seamless basketball and regularly tested new models of shoes. No wonder that when Marquise Converse offered him the opportunity to create perfect shoes, Chuck immediately picked up the subject.

Beneficial cooperation

Since then, Converse has undergone a metamorphosis. A star with Chuck’s signature appeared on the shoe, and the shoes received a raised upper, two small fans on the outside, an aesthetic rubber toe cap and reinforcement on the heels, which was complemented by a thick anti-slip sole. The whole was complemented by strong and solid laces.
Shoes in this form became a real hit and gained a loyal group of fans in virtually every social group. Although the story could be considered finished at this point, there are still two interesting events worth discussing.
Behind the success of the brand was undoubtedly Charles Taylor, but despite the fact that he became the right hand of the President, he never received a share of the profits, and only received a monthly salary. However, it can be assumed that Chuck was happy with this situation, because he worked in the company practically until the end of his life.

Company bankruptcy

Another interesting period in the life of the Converse brand were the 90s of the previous century. It was then that, despite previous successes, the company deteriorated financially to such an extent that it declared bankruptcy. This situation was very well used by Nike, which bought out the bankrupt company and immediately started financial optimization.

On top again!

Nike decided to move the production of shoes to Asia and decided to use cheaper materials for their production. At first, such actions were negatively perceived by fans of the brand, but thanks to the new production process, over time Nike expanded the range of Converses and once again raised the brand to new heights. It is worth noting that Converse shoes are the most counterfeited shoes in the world!