Vans Shoes (Since 1966) Vans, Inc. is a premier manufacturer of shoes and apparel for a target group of young and active consumers. Vans snowboarding boots and skateboarding sneakers are specifically designed for today’s extreme sports culture, and are the footwear of choice among elite athletes worldwide. Through event sponsorships and a chain of skateboarding parks, Vans has made a unique booming in the youth sportswear market. The company’s unflagging commitment to tracking the latest trends has put it in an excellent position to grab an even larger market share as it heads into the 21st century.
On March 16, 1966 Vans Shoe store was established by Paul Van Doren. There is a wide variety of Vans that play a role in many action sports. Style really started to come in the 1960’s when skateboarding started to become big. Skaters needed a type of shoe that was durable and affordable. Vans wanted to make shoes that were manufactured directly to the public. Skateboarding was the main reason vans were invented. Skateboarding means a lot of different things too many people. To some people it was just a sport or game. To others skateboarding was there way of life.
It was a quick and almost free get away from stress and everyone’s problems. There were different styles of skateboarding and each style used a different type of shoe. There was vert skateboarding which included a huge 12 foot half pipe were pro riders would do all kinds of new tricks that would continue to change the sport and evolve forever. This type of skateboarding usually needed some type of ankle support. Another type of skateboarding was called “park”. This included a huge concrete or wooden park in which skaters from all ages would learn to ride different types of jumps, lips, stair cases and other obstacles.
Most riders didn’t need too much ankle support but just needed a shoe that was light and comfortable. The last type of skateboarding was called street. In this type skaters would literally look on the street for different things to ride on and make videos of them doing something crazy. Around the 1970s, skateboarders and BMX riders developed an interest in colorful Vans shoes. As a result, leather was introduced, and was used on the toe and heel mainly for these skateboarders who easily wore these shoes out. Around 1975, custom-made skateboarder shoes were being made, with padded backs, outside heel counter, a padded collar, various color ombinations and special labels, with the most significant part being the sides which protected skaters from accidents. According to Vans, “Skateboarders who like Vans’ rugged make-up and sticky sole are seen sporting Vans all over Southern California in the early 1970s. ” As vans grew and skateboarding took off, there were professionals that started getting sponsored by vans to ride with their shoe. Some of these great riders such as Tony Alva and Stacey Peralta also represented vans. Also, we all know one of the greatest riders of all time, Tony Hawk, rocked vans shoes.
Tony Hawk was one of the top skateboarders in the world by the time he was 16, and in his 17-year career, he won more than 70 skateboarding contests. Hawk started his own skateboarding company, Birdhouse and also has a successful line of video games and skateboarding videos. Tony Hawk was everyone’s hero when it came to skateboarding. With a popular face like his and vans Started to sky rocket because he wore them. The more pro skaters wore them the more they started to buy them. In the 1982 movie “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” Sean Penn’s character, Jeff Spicoli, donned a pair of Vans checkerboard slip-ons.
The movie helped launch Penn’s career and thrust Vans shoes into the national spotlight. For the first time since the company began, Vans shoes were sold in department stores and by independent retailers. Soon after, Van Doren purchased a 175,000 square-foot plant in Orange California, where more than 200 styles of Vans were made. The company began making football, basketball, baseball, soccer and wrestling shoes in an effort to recreate the success it had achieved in the skateboarding market. Vans are a competitor among sports shoe companies.
Over the years, styles were created for other sports such as baseball, skydiving, wrestling and basketball. In 2004, Vans allowed its customers to custom-design styles of slip-on Vans online. The company also sponsors a Vans skate park, the Vans Warped Tour a music and sports festival and skate street contests. Vans are always the heart of these events. In recent years, fashion designers have designed their own Vans styles together with the company. Skateboarders, and those with a preference for casual footwear, can easily identify Vans shoes. Vans have been around since 1966, and have become popular sports shoes.
Included in the collection are sneakers, skateboarding shoes, BMX shoes and snowboarding shoes, which aim to dress youth and those who participate in such sports. Vans remain authentic even when they are worn out and beat up, reflecting the comfort and versatility they bring along to everyday life. Too me vans are not just a shoe, they are part of my life. The first shoe I ever wore was a pair of black and white vans. Shoes and style are constantly changing from the 60’s until now. I used to get picked on because of the shoes I used to wear but as trends came around vans came back and I was once again in style with vans shoes.
