Vans: Off the Wall
posted by: brianka in General, Just for Kicks, Shoe History Corner, Shoe Miscellany on January 6th, 2010
Ask many fashionable women these days to name an iconic shoe or shoe designer, and you will likely receive an answer of ‘Christian Louboutin’, ‘Manolo Blahnik’, ‘Miu Miu’ or other high-end designer likely to be featured on red carpets and Fashion Week.
But, how’s this for an Icon:
Detail from Fast times at Ridgemont High Album Art
This image: Simple. Bold. Instantly recognizable.
Vans became part of the national consciousness and roared into pop-culture in one fell swoop more than 20 years ago.
A generation of kids spent math class inking checks onto their own white vans or local drugstore look-a-likes.
Vans – a brand that has stood the test of time and can honestly be called a classic.
Think Vans are just about shoes? Think again.
We’ve given a brief overview of Vans History before now.
But, if you drop by their website, you will notice something. The Vans brand is not just about selling shoes. You could spend hours just cruising through their website. The Vans brand appears as almost its own stand-alone, surf/skate sub-culture (of which I am no expert, child of Northern California that I am) – encompassing an identity as more than a simple product but also as a vibrant lifestyle and community. From community forums, to art, to events, to shopping, you can find it at the Vans website.
This is such a great example of how a brand’s online presence can be about so much more than a web-based extension of their retail interests.
Oh, and for those of you who are intrigued by the custom-produced, small-business history of the Vans brand?
You might enjoy in this retrospective coffee-table book, ‘Vans, Off the Wall’ ($24.95@ Vans.com).
Vans: Off the Wall by Doug Palladini tells the story of the community of action sports legends, musicians, artists and trendsetters that helped to define laid back California style as we know it. This personal, insider account features oral histories from Vans originals including Tony Alva, Steve Caballero, John Cardiel, Shaun Palmer and Joel Tudor and stunning images from CR Stecyk, R. Grant Brittain, Art Brewer, Trevor Graves and many more renowned photographers. This first run, 2009 edition 9″ by 9 3/4″ hardcover bound book is 208 pages and includes 365 full color illustrations.
Oh, and as for how it all started – that whole customized shoes thing? Yeah, Vans still has you covered there, too.
7 Comments
- Click Here to Speak Up
March 05, 2012 at 8:03 pm, Off The Wall Vans said:
Off The Wall Vans have great quality and are cool and comfy to wear.
May 10, 2011 at 4:11 pm, shoedrool said:
I like Vans but I wish they had better customizing options like Converse or Zazzle.
June 03, 2010 at 11:31 pm, Ayen said:
Wow, i always love this brand. And i often wonder when to have one since i can't afford the prize.
January 07, 2010 at 12:22 pm, Bryan said:
I have seen many shoes like that but i guess they were just imitations, yours was the original one. How I love to have a pair as gift to myself for my coming birthday.
January 07, 2010 at 3:27 am, galligator said:
R5- Steve Madden played with that (last year,I think), but the option disappeared after about 6 months. In their case, each custom shoe priced at about $200 and I think that was a case of bad timing. Not only was that close to the price you could get a designer shoe on sale, it was higher than many of their core customer base are used to paying for in shoes. Perhaps if the price point were similar today – given the current higher prices for shoes just about everywhere – they might be more successful with that model if they were to launch the option again.
I also wonder, since many people don't buy shoes online, if there was enough awareness that it existed to support it in the business model.
January 06, 2010 at 8:22 pm, r5bales said:
The website is amazing. I spent hours playing with the possible combinations of shoes. I wish we could do something like that for fashion-dress shoes.
January 06, 2010 at 3:39 pm, randomfashionjourney said:
i remember my professor talking about the Vans company in a class at FIT. They're managed to stay around and do well because they've nurtured the skater subculture and stuck to that niche. three of my exboyfriends loved Vans