TikTok is often the starting place of clothing trends. Lots of students see themselves in the fashion trends and identify with various aesthetics. With all of these trends, one remains prominent through and through, shoes. Shoes can undoubtedly make or break any outfit.
Converse are one of the three most common shoes you can find at New Tech. They’re a versatile and comfortable option for anyone with any style. Some people wear Converse in white, one of the most common options along with black. Others wear different and more unique colors, such as red, pink, or blue. The Converse brand started in 1917, originally made for basketball players. Today Converse says they “celebrate freedom of expression”. When you walk through the halls of New Tech you can see how many people take Converse’s mission to heart. Though they didn’t intend to be worn as anything other than athletic shoes, the shoes became more popular in the 1980s as a casual addition to many outfits. Even with its resurgence, it wasn’t until 2012 that the brand acknowledged that they were not in the athletic shoe industry anymore. Ever since the resurgence of Converse, they’ve become shoes you just can’t get rid of. Just in 2023, they made 2.4 Billion dollars in revenue, and in 1997, 550 Million pairs were produced.
Though we all know and love Converse there is another shoe it’s often put up against, Nikes. This shoe brand is currently having its time to shine as a collector’s item and a statement piece. Nike started as a track shoe made by a track coach named Bill Bowerman, who was responsible for the making of the waffle trainer (later called the Moon Shoe). He wanted a shoe that would be able to grip the ground but also be lightweight at the same time, so he began to experiment with his wife’s waffle maker. His experiment was ultimately successful. The Moon Shoes were meant to mimic astronaut’s footprints on the moon and be lightweight, allowing you to run freely. Though the history with Nike is more straightforward, that does not take away from its important role in today’s fashion and the history of shoe brands.
Practical and stylish, Vans has been a name to remember in the shoe industry since 1966, when skateboarding became a more popular hobby. On the first day of business, Vans sold 12 shoes made in the store specifically for each of the 12 customers. In the early 70’s, skaters around the first store’s location became aware of the store and found the rugged makeup of Vans appealing. This era of vans is marked by their first style of shoes now called “The Authentic”.
In 1966 Tony Alva and Stacy Peralta decided to give vans a makeover, making them into the colorful and padded look we know today. They called these the “Vans #95”, which we now call “the Eras”. This makeover wasn’t the only influential part of 1966 for Vans, they also created the Off The Wall logo and slogan. Just the next year the “Old Skool” vans made a debut, which were incredibly popular in 2020-2021 with the skater-girl or e-girl aesthetics. They also began including leather panels for durability. Through the years, Vans just became more and more popular.
Citations-
Bengtson, Russ. “50 Things You Didn’t Know about Converse Chuck Taylor All Stars.” Complex, Complex, 4 Feb. 2023, www.complex.com/sneakers/a/russ-bengtson/50-things-you-didnt-know-about-converse-chuck-taylor-all-stars.
Sapience, Startup. “Converse - the Rise and Fall and Rise Again.” Medium, Medium, 16 Sept. 2020, startupsapience.medium.com/converse-the-rise-and-fall-and-rise-again-326c7df60575.
“Converse (Brand).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 25 Jan. 2024, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Converse_(brand)#:~:text=The%20growth%20of%20Converse%20as,billion%20in%20revenue%20in%202023.
“Nike, Inc..” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 4 Feb. 2024, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nike,_Inc.
VFC, Divante & “Vans History.” Vans, www.vans.com/en-us/company/about. Accessed 20 Feb. 2024.
