Converse...

Converse /ˈkɒnvərs/ is an American shoe company that primarily produces skating shoes and lifestyle brand footwear and apparel. Founded in 1908, it has been a subsidiary of Nike, Inc. since 2003.

During World War II, the company shifted its manufacturing from the public, and instead made footwear for the military. It was one of the few producers of athletic shoes and for over a half century the company dominated the American court shoe market. From the 1970s, the company lost its dominant position after other companies presented their own styles.

Converse shoes are distinguished by a number of features, including the company's star insignia, the All Star's rubber sole, smooth rounded toe, and wrap-around strip.

Converse manufactures its products under the Cons, Chuck Taylor All-Star, John Varvatos, and Jack Purcell trade names. In addition to apparel and footwear, the company sells other items through retailers in over 160 countries and through approximately 75 company-owned retail stores across the United States, and employed 2,658 in the U.S. in 2015.

At age 47, Marquis Mills Converse, who was previously a manager at a footwear manufacturing firm, opened the Converse Rubber Shoe Company in February 1908 in Malden, Massachusetts.^[4] The company was a rubber shoe manufacturer, providing winterized rubber soled footwear for men, women, and children. By 1910, Converse was producing shoes daily, but it was not until 1915 that the company began manufacturing athletic shoes.

When the U.S. entered World War II in 1941, Converse shifted production to manufacturing rubberized footwear, outerwear, and protective suits for the military. The company resumed production of athletic footwear after the war's end. Popular during the 1950s and 1960s, Converse promoted an American image with its Converse Yearbook. Artist Charles Kerins created cover art that celebrated Converse's role in the lives of high school and college athletes Converse Jack Purcells.

In the 1970s, Converse purchased the trademark rights to Jack Purcell sneakers from B.F. Goodrich.

Converse lost their monopoly from the 1970s onward, with new competitors, including Puma and Adidas, then Nike, then a decade later Reebok, who introduced new designs to the sports market. Converse found themselves no longer the official shoe of the National Basketball Association (NBA), a title they had relished for many years.

The chevron and star insignia—a logo that remains on a large portion of Converse footwear other than the All Star—was created by Jim Labadini, an employee.

Canvas-rubber shoes regained popularity in the 1980s as casual footwear, but Converse eventually became over-dependent on the "All Stars" brand, whose market collapsed by 1989–1990. By the year 2000, Converse was slipping repeatedly into receivership as debt piled up yearly.

Converse filed for bankruptcy on January 22, 2001. Not too long after, on March 30, its last manufacturing plants in the U.S., closed down, as production fully moved overseas. In April 2001, Footwear Acquisitions, led by Marsden Cason and Bill Simon, purchased the brand from bankruptcy and added industry partners Jack Boys, Jim Stroesser, Lisa Kempa, and David Maddocks to lead the turnaround of America's Original Sports Company.

In July 2003, Nike paid $309 million to acquire Converse.Nike approached the 1980s revival around 2010 to relaunch the footwear. Nike also expanded the Converse brand to other businesses apart from shoes, much akin to its other brands.

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