What's a sneaker?
Sneakers are materials we wear on our feet right? Yes, that is correct, but it's has turned into something more than that nowadays.
We are a sneaker blog, so why not explain what exactly what we’re about here.
Such a simple topic, let us tell you from our perspective why we like sneakers and the evolution of it all.
A new way of self-expression, how we can improve our performance in sports, in the workforce, art to many out there, creating our own identity.
We're pretty sure you have a favorite pair of sneakers you like, almost everybody in the world has at least one sneaker which might be their favorite, rather they own it or want it. Many lose their breath sometimes when they see an uncommon unique sneaker, the look of it, the shape, the vibe of the person wearing them, the thrill of owning a specific style, or just the feel. Before it was all about the sneaker brands themselves, but it's now beyond that with so many different varieties, options to choose and collect from. Amazing how sneakers have impacted society in these last few decades.
But still, what is exactly is a sneaker?
In the early 1870s originated.
Different artificial materials coming together to create a particular footwear style for our feet to walk in.
Simple right?
Upperparts of a sneaker may be created from cloth-like materials, typically Canvas materials, textiles, leather in some cases, shoelaces, and the main article that makes sneakers, sneakers, the rubber soles at the bottom of the footwear.
Resistant to the ground surface from water and dirt, depending on the quality being used they can last for a long time.
Creative patterns at the rubber bottoms of the sneakers control the grip on the ground surface.
This the basic parts of what make a sneaker a sneaker.
As designers and companies began to add different types of contents to the upper materials, such as using materials like suede, patent leather shoelaces even changed slightly in design for certain sneakers but not as much.
Sneakers silhouette has remained the same for while in the early stages, dramatically changing over time.
Sneakers have always mainly have been high-top, passing the ankle area.
Not much has changed in a major way to the point like sneakers make use fly now, not yet.
Wait. . . What we're people wearing before sneakers?
Standard hard bottom leather dress shoes and boots. We can add that even before then, open-toe footwear can also be an answer. As some countries around the world in earlier times didn't have any options for footwear available yet.
We started barefoot walking around, imagine that in today's time.
Yuck and ouch.
Towards the end of the eighteen hundreds - the early nineteen hundreds sneakers initially was manufactured for the workforce, military, and sports-related activities.
Sneakers started being constructed for selected sports such as track and field & Olympic-related sports.
Companies would make sneakers for factory workers because of how durable and comfortable they were, the funny thing is that companies sneakers came from were rubber companies that made products related to rubber.
Military groups began to adapt to using sneakers, war era came along, mass-producing sneakers for WWI, later on, WWll for servicemen. What started for sports ended turning into casual wear used for leisure.
Sneakers started to become useful for humans, shoes have been around but how we innovated them opening different opportunities for us as humans, getting around easier more efficiently, used for jobs as a tool to perform what is needed.
That's the important aspect of how sneakers have become what they are today.
So how did sneakers become popular & their fascination with them?
As sports became acknowledged across the globe, big sports events like the Olympics played a significant factor in the increase in sneakers as performers wanted a high-quality shoe that can help them excel, which they did.
Hundred thirty years ago a sport that’s perhaps the most known activity to the world, basketball was hatch into the world.
In the early nineteen hundred tennis, baseball and track slowly became popular pastime activities for being active and entertained.
Athletes began wearing these sneakers people and started to notice what was on their feet, countless people saw how proficient they were, demand increased even more with regular individuals wanting pairs.
Many known athletes began to become brand ambassadors and promoters for the different sneakers.
Young teenagers were already lining up for sneakers back then while sports became televised, broadcasted, seen throughout newspapers and magazines in the world. Major retail brands started to increase in sales as many people started becoming interested in sneakers more and more as these uprising of these special sporting events.
Before the famous check and three stripes, there were the all-stars. One of the first iconic sneakers in the early start of the wave of the fascination of sneakers by a company called “ Converse”. The beginning of the sneaker world in the early 1900s.
Between the 1920s and 1940’s wars, the Great Depression, financial struggles over the world. During the war era, many cloth materials and rubber went towards the war efforts for supplies. The Sneaker phase died down, hardly much unfolded in the United States during these times. In places like Australia, United Kingdom, Japan, sneakers began to spread widely in new areas. New sneaker retail companies appeared, as brands like the Big cat “ Puma “, the notable three-stripe brand, the tiger brand “Onitsuka” establish in Japan. The birth of what we see today, but as for right now during, sneakers was something many tosses on their feet, nothing more, nothing less.
Popularity emerged gently, a fresh new fad in exercise, dancing, and pop culture in the 1950s.
School institutions began to allow sneakers tolerated in classrooms, technology slowly emerging into this new era, the workforce is now abundant with opportunities in many different new industries. Sports more widely broadcasted worldwide, athletes to become even more familiar all across the world. Fashion has stunningly changed, meaning so did sneakers. Activities like basketball, dancing, and tennis. Many started to find more things to do.
Pop culture took a major role in influencing the sneaker world, with the NBA, NFL, new retail brands, entrainment fresh in society this continued well into the 1960s with many more new sneaker brands and styles slowly being born. Sneaker retail brands saw this as an opportunity into the future.
As the Seventies approached, sneaker culture continues to evolve. Materials, sneaker silhouettes, designs brought to the drawing board are absolutely in a different stage. Fitness lifestyle became a way to get people active in their daily lives, pop culture gaining more attention from more individuals as telecommunications start to be available and spread out. The demand from athletes and people from industries all across the world grew year after year. While others on the scene saw a massive increase in sales and exposure, a tremendous amount of retail brands began to come to life on the market. In the meantime, skateboarding has set off to be a new ionic activity. Sneaker retail brands saw this as a moment to collaborate with other retail brands that matched the same goals to reach a similar target market, a new subculture within the leisure lifestyle. Much like the high-top sneaker "All-stars", a new retail brand became predominant in the skateboard community called “ Vans”. The low-top sneaker that wouldn't go above your ankles, later adopting a high-top silhouette style. All over the world in the 70s, dancing was always of self-expression but even more with new musicians displaying massive talent. Nightlife culture started to become a thing in society, night clubs and lounges became a popular social activity to sporting the latest fashion trends involving sneakers.
The sneaker culture is now surprisingly far-reaching than anybody could visualize back in the early nineteen-hundreds, were starting to realize how a clothing article use only for us to walk in becomes a status symbol. As we rock our way into the awesome 1980s era, materials are made a little lighter, along with the shoes themselves, advances in technology and manufacturing making production more vast in a way. Athlete sneakers have progressed to help players perform even better on courts, fields, and tracks. Elements like extra paddings, updating the tongues, adding contents like straps, ways to adjusting the shoelace, distinctive rubber soles patterns, and heel tabs as designers and creators adapted modifying sneakers over time.
During the '80s sneakers is being showcased heavily through music, sports, fashion, and advertisements. Music artists started mixing lyrics with fashion, heavily influencing the world, which brought the light to many major retail brands to reach out, seizing opportunities from all over. Collaboration deals from retailers would offer incentives to sports athletes, musicians, entertainers, and influencers for publicizing, advertising to the market of people who wanted in on sneakers, also popularize any other relatable products. Designers in the industry help create different sneakers with materials that might be hard to get or make those that others couldn't produce, coming up with new patterns, designs, showing uniqueness that other brands may not offer. All over the world, this new subculture created a fear of missing out, as certain popular styles started to sell out, people coined specific sneakers as exclusives or rare. Before we know it, Scarcity started to activate. Seen in the media, promoted, showcased, guaranteed that it may not last on shelves for long. Rather than regular dress shoes they displayed, luxury brands began to produce and market sneakers. Another fresh appetite and evolution for sneakers, in the nineteen-eighties, the sneaker culture is stapled worldwide.
From the 1980s into the 90s, what more can you say more about sneakers? Drastically changing as the world was, sneakers have become a niche, a subculture for many to relate to one another. We still have to acknowledge many individuals still couldn't necessarily get their hands on the new abundant amount of fashionable sneakers. Many times it came down to the environment or possible financial hardships, as some sneaker prices weren't in the budget for some. The only thing was to do is admire sneakers watching others passing by with them, what popular tv show characters had on, the hottest music videos, newest movies, or advertisements. Once it's on-screen, another item is added to the Christmas list.
The super cool 1990s into the new 21st century, a new daily conversation topic at school, in the gym, at the park, in the workplace, in the neighborhood, sneakers are now a phenomenon. Now beyond the retail brands, beyond pop culture, the sports world. Women, men, kids sharing commonalities through significant colorways, releases, models, styles, a way of self-expression to show individuality. Starting from matching outfits, going to an event, collecting multiple pairs, humans can connect from it all. With hundreds of sneaker retail brands in the world, there's an ample amount of sneakers for everybody to choose from in the market. From small counties in South America to across the water in Europe sneakers are now global.
The 2000s to Now?
Opportunities emerged as upcoming designers, music artists, hands-on athletes illustrated true creativity with up-to-date colorways, silhouettes, and materials. Retailers continued collaborations with each other grew as consumer value increased. New technology appeared as they are now mass-produced at a massive rate. Sports has expanded throughout the globe, basketball leagues, college athletes, international sporting events, numerous brands wanted to guide a way for the innovation of sneakers for performance. Air bubbles in various sneaker models, ventilation for better comfortable wear, new materials such as foam instead of rubber for the soles.
Not just for sports and fashion but also for the workforce to improve efficiency in our workplaces delivering us the comfort and durability needed.
Currently, major retail brands created a platform where you can now customize the selective sneakers that you can choose from that they can create for you straight to your door.
Customization of sneakers has risen as many have started adding their artistic ideas to sneakers. Art events, conventions, online communities are now common ways to engage in the same interest. Weekend sneaker releases for new styles and colorways have developed into a gathering occasion attracting many depending on locations and often what's in demand.
This culture's popularity doesn't seem like it will be fading away anytime soon, continuing well into the years as today's new generation of sneaker lovers has charged right into the sneaker industry disrupting the market all around.
So what do you call sneakers in your area? Tennis shoes, trainers, runners, kicks, joggers.
Iconic sneakers such as Allstar Hi-top Chucks, white Air Force Ones, cities around the world they are often referred to by many different names other than the original brand name.
With the history, creation of the culture, the link to our daily lives, increasing demand, we understand how these types of shoes are different from any other type of shoes. With a rubber sole with upper material to protect our feet, we continue to move happily forward in our walking life.
Sneakers are just that.