Converse Chuck Taylor All Star Shoes

Converse shoes have been changing with the times for over 100 years, staying classic but evolving with every passing decade. Back in 1908, Marquis M. Converse opened the Converse Rubber Shoe Company in Malden, Massachusetts. Converse also made tires, but it was their rubber shoes that became famous: by 1910 the company was producing 4,000 shoes daily.

In 1917, the Converse All-Star basketball shoe was introduced and Chuck Taylor, a basketball player for the Akron Firestones, began to promote them. The original All Star Converse shoes came in only one colour: brown, with black trim. Taylor came on board the Converse Rubber Company in 1921 as a salesman, travelling all across the United States selling Converse sneakers and hosting basketball clinics. That same year, his name was added to All-Stars sneakers, and Chuck Taylor Converse remain the biggest selling basketball shoe in history.

The Converse company grew rapidly when World War II broke out, and they began to manufacture apparel, footwear and rubber protective suits for troops. Converse shoes continued to dominate in the postwar era of the 1950's and 60's, and by 1966 Converse had 80% of the U.S. sneaker market. (Stats still show that 60% of people have or have owned a pair of Converse!)

Converse shoes were a favourite of high school, college and professional basketball teams, as well as a symbol of 'youth rebellion' among teenagers, especially after James Dean was photographed wearing jeans and white Chuck Taylor's.

Another popular style of Converse shoes were designed by Jack Purcell, a world famous badminton champion, in 1935. Purcell wanted to create a more comfortable court shoe for badminton players, and consequently Converse Jack Purcell shoes became a huge seller.

In the 1970's, Converse sneakers became available in a wide range of colours, and their popularity extended off the basketball court to the stage, where they were worn by numerous rock musicians, and then by the general public. This helped keep Converse in the spotlight, as the popularity of Converse shoes among athletes began to decline in the late 70s, as some of the bigger footwear names came onto the scene.

Even though musicians and teenagers continued to make a fashion statement with Converse shoes throughout the 80s and 90s, by 2001 bad business decisions and increasing competition caused Converse to file for bankruptcy, but that wasn't the end of the brand.

In a few years, Converse had worked their way back up, and today they are going strong. Converse shoes are once again available on store shelves in hundreds of different prints, colours, patterns and models – including the original Chuck Taylor Converse shoe! Top apparel designers such as John Varvatos have worked extensively with the brand to create unique Converse sneakers, and Converse has joined forces with big brands like Target to create inexpensive lines of the iconic shoe. Numerous celebrities, including Ben Affleck, Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, and Justin Bieber have all been photographed wearing  Converse shoes.

To date, over 800 million pairs of Converse shoes have been sold, and they continue to be a part of history and to influence modern fashion.