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Plimsolls
In the late 18th century, people wore rubber soled shoes called plimsolls, but they were pretty crude—for one thing, there was no right foot or left foot. -
Keds
In 1892 Goodyear, begins to make rubber and canvas shoes. It produced them under different names, but in 1916 settled on Keds as the brand -
Converse
Marquis Converse produced the first shoe made just for basketball, called Converse All-Stars..Chuck Taylor endorsed the shoes, and they became known as Chuck Taylor All-Stars. -
Adidas
A German man named Adi Dassler, starts to produce hand-made training shoes in his mother's washroom. 1931 Adidas makes its first tennis shoe that he named after himself -
Puma
Rudolf Dassler, Adi's brother, opens Puma and makes the Puma Atom. Puma's first football boots were worn by members of the West German football team. -
Blue Ribbon Sports/ Nike
1962 Phil Knight, a business major at the University of Oregon, and his coach, Bill Bowerman, combine to provide a low-cost, high-tech athletic shoe under the name Blue Ribbon Sports. 1968 BRS begins marketing new designs and technology and changes its name to Nike -
Vans
Paul Van Doren partnered with his brother Jim and long-time business associate Serge D’Elia and on March 15, 1966 the Van Doren Rubber Company sneaker line began producing their unique shoes. -
Wsffle Tainer
1972 Bill Bowerman pours rubber into his wife's waffle iron, creating the basis for the popular Nike Waffle Racer.1974 Nike releases the Waffle Trainer, with Bill Bowerman's famous waffle sole. -
Nike Air
1979 Nike creates the first Nike Air sole units, resulting in the revolutionary Nike Air cushioning -
Jordans
Michael Jordan signed a contract to wear a Nike shoe called Air Jordans—the most famous sneaker ever made. Even after Jordan retired from the NBA, his shoes continued to be best sellers. -
Reebok
2006 Adidas completes the purchase of Reebok.
