Shoes

Converse goes solid gold this July with their new All Star Light model, a silhouette that can best described as a Chuck Taylor with a twist. Besides this high top model look for a low cut style with the same gold treatment to release at the same time. Ah, if only GoldDust was still wrestling.

Converse is a shoe company which has been manufacturing shoes since the beginning of the 20th century. Converse is an American company, and it was started by Marquis M. Converse in his late 30's. He was previously a manager at a footwear firm, and it all started when he opened the Boston Rubber Shoe Company in 1908. This company provided winter rubber soled footwear for all categories of clients: women, men and children.

In 1910 they were producing almost 4,000 pairs daily, and it 1915 they started manufacturing a new type of product: shoes for tennis. In 1917 they introduced Converse All-Star basketball shoes. Chuck Taylor, a basketball player complained about sore feet, but the situation changed, and he started working for the company. He was a salesman and in the same time, company's ambassador. HE was promoting Converse shoes in the United States and his signature was also added to the All Star collection.

During the WWII Converse started manufacturing footwear, apparel, boots and many other products for pilots and troops. Converse promoted a distinctly American image with the Yearbook. In 1970's Converse bought the trademark rights to Jack Purcell sneakers from Goodrich. With competitors' rise, Converse lost very much on the market, and the apparently monopoly they held started its decline since the 80's, when Puma and Adidas strongly appeared on the market. The continous loss of market share, and the poor business decisions taken by managers led to bankruptcy, and this happened in 2001. The factory in US was closed, but the products for the American Market were still manufactured in various countries like China, Indonesia, Italy, Lithuania and Vietnam.

In 2003, July, this company was purchased by the rival company Nike for $305 million. Along time, a lot of special editions have been released, like The Ramones, or the Sailor Jerry, The Control (brown and green edition), 1Hund(15% of the profits support HIV/AIDS relief) and there were hundreds of artists from the whole world who designed various collections.

Converse has recently released a special edition of the iconic All star model, which has been dubbed the Gachapin High. They feature a white canvas upper with an all – over print of the characters on the go. Gachapin is actually a popular Japanese television character who appeared in the children’s program Hirake! Ponkiki on Fuji TV. These are now available at Ripe. via HighSnobiety.

Camilla Engman was invited to ‘decorate’ a pair of Converse Shoes as part of the joinred.com program. If her design goes into production, swissmiss might actually be spotted wearing Converse, for the first time in her life.

There may be no other sneaker icon in history as recognizable as the Converse All-Star. To Converse’s credit, they have consistently figured out ways to keep such a simple design fresh and relevant over a hundred year span. Continuing in this tradition, Converse Japan recently revealed the Expo Nippon line, a tribute to Japanese artisan culture.

The Owari-Shippo Hi Chuck Taylor is inspired by the art of the long revered Owari-Shippo porcelain crafts. The shoe’s appearance runs with the porcelain theme by using glassy patent leather to create the shine and color palette that the world famous crafts are known for. The color segments are divided by metallic piping and are highlighted by touches of gold and silver materials throughout. Two different colorways are available now at select Japanese retailers such as Flauge.

If you are fan of the iconic rock bands, you might like this collection of sneakers from Converse. The Music Collection will include designs celebrating the Grateful Dead, Black Sabbath, The Doors, The Who, Ozzy and Pink Floyd. The Grateful Dead and Black Sabbath versions are available at Journeys now. The All Star High Top Grateful Dead Skull and All Star Low Top Grateful Dead Bears are available online and in Journeys stores and should be big hits with Dead Heads. The Black Sabbath We Sold Our Soul For Rock ‘N’ Roll are available on Journeys.com while the other two Black Sabbath versions (tan and black/gold) are only available in Journeys stores.

Since skateboarders adopted the Chuck Taylor back in the 80′s, Converse has made a couple runs at building a serious skate division. The last shot ended back in ’01 and included both Felix Arguelles and a lawsuit…

Japanese fashionistas have always had the strange ability to pull off outfits and combinations that many of us would normally find to be unfathomable. So, it comes as no surprise that the newest Converse Japan Summer Collection…

For the 100th anniversary of the All Star sneaker, Converse has released the “ALL STAR FASHION MATERIALS” sneaker which was first seen in 1997. Snakeskin and sneakers have always had a good affiliation with each other so for this sneaker, Converse has created a patchwork pattern utilizing real python skin. As expected, real snakeskin doesn’t come cheap either as the shoes retail for ¥39,900 (~380 USD). Available now at Flauge.

One of rock’s most prolific songwriters and reluctant successes, Kurt Cobain humbly took the underground grunge movement mainstream. In the process, he changed his generation and left the world with a legacy of songs that continue to inspire generations to come. To honor this music great, Converse debuts the Kurt Cobain collection of shoes that feature artwork and scribbles borrowed from his personal notebooks. Distressed in the way Kurt Cobain wore them, the shoes provide a rarely seen glimpse into the head of this musical and lyrical genius with sketches that display his hopes, dreams and lyrics from amazing songs such as “Come As You Are”. Often pictured wearing Chuck Taylor All Star, Jack Purcell or One Star shoes, the collection includes versions of all three shoes with wear and fray detailing and Kurt Cobain’s signature subtly embroidered on the shoe’s outer. Available in black and white versions with lyric, notebook scribbles or distressed detailing, shoes in this collection retail for MSRP $50 – $65 and will be available nationwide at specialty retailers and online at www.converse.com beginning in May.