The Chuck Taylor
From humble beginnings in the early 1900's, Converse started out as a rubberised shoe company. By 1910, the Converse factory was churning out 4,000 pairs of shoes a day made for men, women and children to help combat wintery weather with a rubberised sole.
It wasn't until 1915 that Converse first produced a shoe purely for sport. The style they developed was an athletic men's shoe for playing tennis.
Converse didn't become a recognised brand until 1917, when they introduced the Converse All-Star basketball shoe. The rubberised style and fabric upper became a style synonymous with the sport, and Converse's popularity grew within basketball.
In 1921, a basketball player named Charles 'Chuck' Taylor, joined a team that Converse was sponsoring.
He famously walked into Converse's offices, complaining that their shoes weren't comfortable enough. He was given a job there and then, as a salesman and representative of the Converse brand.
Chuck traveled the country, giving basketball classes and selling Converse. He also helped to improve the designs, asking for more ankle support and protection in the form of an ankle patch that still exists on hi top Converse. Converse later added Chuck's name and signature to this patch in tribute to the player.
Chuck's started out in just black- however, white was offered later, and then, with pressure from basketball teams across the country, Converse produced the Chuck Taylor basketball shoes in a huge array of colours.
Innovation marched on, and with the arrival of the likes of Nike, Reebok and Adidas on the basketball scene, Converse couldn't keep up. They lost their status as the NBA's shoe of choice, and began the gradual transition into the fashion footwear brand that they are today-not much has changed from the original Chuck Taylor design, resulting in a style that is full of quality, class and great American nostalgia.
Ryan J Gray
