Ask almost anyone who pays attention to the athletic footwear industry and they'll undoubtedly tell you that Vans is virtually synonymous with skate culture. It was a brand founded in the 1960s by what this world needs more of today, intuitive entrepreneurs. In the case of Vans, those intuitive entrepreneurs were the Van Doren brothers, James and Paul. As other footwear brands have fallen by the wayside, either through closure or merger, Vans remains strong to this day thanks to the company's responsiveness and ingenuity. It is also getting ready to celebrate an anniversary this year. Here are the details:
About the Anniversary
2012 marks the 20th Anniversary of the Vans Half Cab, one of the company's most iconic pairs of skate shoes. Perhaps what makes the Half Cab stand out more than its patented sticky, waffle sole is the shoes' origin. Like the checkerboard slip-ons of Fast Times at Ridgemont High fame, the Half Cabs were created by some of the company's core consumers. In this case, it was skaters. The Half Cab started out in life as a pair of 1980s high top, signature skate shoes designed for pro skater extraordinaire, Steve Caballero. When the sport started transitioning from concrete pools to concrete sidewalks, skaters did what skaters do best, get creative. The high tops were too restrictive for executing street tricks so skaters began lopping off the tops of the shoes and strengthening the newly exposed edges with duct tape. The improvements caught the eye of the shoes' namesake and in less time than it takes to bust out a kickflip nowadays, the Half Cab was born. In honor of the Half Cab's milestone, Vans is planning to release 12 limited editions of the skate shoes throughout the year.
January's Release
For January 2012 the limited edition is being called the Supreme and 20 pairs of the shoes will be released at select Supreme stores worldwide. There has been no official word released on what the rest of the year's releases will bring. In my opinion, the Supreme edition is going to be hard to beat because it is a replica of what skater's wore before the official Half Cab release. It is a Caballero high top that has been modified and signed by none other than Cab himself. You don't get much better than that.
My children are skaters and I have a history of following the sport.
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