Low-top, high-top, or boot Converse come in basically every shape, size, style, color, pattern, design, and the possibilities go on. Anyone who is anyone has a pair of converse. What is the non-boring history of Converse? What caused them to disappear like a ghost? What made them the best selling shoe ever? And some rockin facts, please. We got all that right here, your everything you ever wanted to know about Converse article.

Converse first came about in 1908 when Marquis M Converse (he named his shoe after himself, how cool!) opened the first converse Rubber Shoe Company in Malden, Massachusetts. At first the company only made winterized rubber soled shoes for men, woman and kiddies. They caught on like a wild fire and by 1910 the Converse Shoe factory was making 4,000 (that’s 2,000 pairs) [shoes] a day. In 1912 the Converse shoe company began making its famous tennis shoes. In 1917 basketball was revolutionized with the day debut of the world’s first performance basketball shoes, Converse All Stars. When the US entered WW2 Converse took things to a new level and began making combat boots for pilots and troops in the war.
In the 1950’s Converse shoes became a symbol of youth and rebellion, and became the number one footwear among teenagers. Girls normally wore converse with skirts and ankle socks, while boys normally wore them with jeans. Through the 1960’s and 1970’s converse released a variety of shoes for sports such as; basketball, football, track, etcetera, continuing its popular rule. However in the late 1980’s thing went sour for converse.
In the 1980’s the footwear industry underwent a change. This change was the beginning of a new period in footwear involving technology and improvement (Heelies!!!). Converse tried to keep up with the change and bought a biomechanics research lab, but unfortunately Converse couldn’t play with the big boys anymore and was forced to file bankruptcy in 2003 (although at this point hardly anybody was wearing Converse anymore). Converse became nobodies barely hanging onto life fighting through everyday until Nike came along to save the day for this struggling company (Superhero!). In June of 2003 Converse finally accepted Nike’s offer for life and Nike bought them over for a whooping $305 million (That’s a lot of $$$). Converse is still owned by Nike today. Now once again Converse is popular. It’s not anywhere near as popular as it was back in the day, but that kind of popularity is hard to reach twice; and Converse is lucky to have gotten a second chance like this.
“Converse shoes are more then just shoes” (unknown). Back in the 1940’s and 1950’s converse where the coolest shoes and came in one style (high-top) and two colors (white and black). Everyone was wearing them even sports teams, but what made them so popular? Converse are popular to different people for different reasons. One of the main reasons that so many people wear Converse and they are so popular is because you can get Converse anyway you want. Converse comes in low-top, two-tongue, two-flap, high-top, and boot-style. There is an unlimited amount of design choices. You can buy converse with print (zebra print), different colors (pink, green, red, orange blue ect.), glittery, and or original black canvas. To make Converse your very own you can even custom design your own and have them shipped to you. Another reason that Converse has become so popular is that most people think that they are comfortable (I say most people because there are always those haters out there who spend their lives blogging about how awful everything is). Also there are many different types of converse. The most popular type is the Tennis Shoe Converse, but Converse also makes shoes for football, basketball, baseball, track, and other sports. There are also Converse flip-flops and even boat shoes.

There are many cool things about converse, but what are the coolest things? Well, as mentioned before you can create your own converse so they are specialized for you, one of a kind. 800 million (400 pairs) Converse have been sold worldwide which is about 4.5 million pairs each year. Marquis came up with his idea for rubber soled shoes when he fell down the stairs and hurt himself and his pet donkey (its name was Seabiscut [no joke]). Studies have shown that 60% of Americans have ever had a pair of Converse. In 1921 Chuck Taylor joined the Converse industry, but he had only worn his first pair of Converse in 1918. In 1923 his name was added to the converse logo.

Converse Shoes are very awesome shoes, and they have some very awesome history. Now wear your Converse with proud because you know how they came to be on your feet.