History of Converse

Converse began in 1908 as a rubber shoe company specializing in making rubber goods including boots and galoshes (rubber-based shoes). The company was called ‘Converse Rubber Shoe Company’, and was founded in 1908 by Marquis Mills Converse in Malden, Massachusetts.

Soon after, they adapted and started to use their rubber to make sneakers. By 1910, Converse was well into daily production, however, it wasn’t until 1915 that the athletic shoes come in production. The original Converse shoe, which bore the ‘All Star’ trademark, was a high-top sneaker introduced in 1917.

The company had expanded its plant to produce 4,000 pairs of boots and rubbers daily. In 1916, they were looking to expand their company and the decision was made by Converse to begin manufacturing footwear for basketball.

Converse’s golden era spanned the 1940s and the 1960s, when it became the most popular sneaker for any athletic activity. At its peak, the brand is said to have controlled 80% of the US sneaker market.

In 2001, Converse filed for bankruptcy, but Nike bought them in 2003 for $305 million and picked the company back up.

Their manufacturing was no longer in the USA after 2001 and was moved to countries such as China, India, Vietnam, and Indonesia. As of 2014, Converse has sold over a billion pairs of shoes with their signature trademarks – which include a midsole design comprising a toe bumper and toe cap, along with an upper and/or lower stripe, as well as the ‘star in circle’ logo.
History of Converse

History of Nike Inc.

Philip Hampson Knight ran track for Coach Bill Bowerman at the University of Oregon in the 1960s. Knight was a member of the school’s track team. His coach Bowerman always experiments with running shoes in order to make his team running faster.

Knight started his own athletic shoe distribution company in 1964. Using his Plymouth Reliant as a warehouse, he began importing and distributing track shoes from Onitsuka Company, ltd, a Japanese manufacturer.

Knight sent several pairs as a sample to Bowerman. Bowerman was pleased with samples and made Knight a proposal he could not refuse.

In 1964, the men formed Blue Ribbon Sports, the precursor to Nike, by shaking hands and each committing to proffer $500 in start-up capitals. Blue Ribbon Sports was founded in Eugene, Oregon USA, as a distributor for running shoes produced by Japan.

However, Onitsuka saw the huge potential of the American shoe market and dropped Knight’s relatively small company in favor of larger, more experienced distributors.

In around 1970-71 Bowerman developed a lightweight, gridlike sole after testing out liquid polyurethane in his wife’s waffle iron and this eventually led to the launch of the Waffle trainer in 1974, the company’s first national best seller.

They went on together to start the Nike Corporation in 1972. Nike became Nike legally in 1978. By 1980 Nike had reached a 50 percent market share in the United States athletic shoe market.

By the end of 1980, Nike completed its IPO and became a publicly traded company.

Nike does not own a single shoe or apparel factory. Instead, the firm contracts the production of its products to independently owned manufactures.

Today, practically all Nike subcontracted factories are in countries such as Indonesia, Vietnam, China, and Thailand.
History of Nike Inc.