Jack Purcell Johnny OX

C2 550x550 Jack Purcell Johnny OX

Today we’re going to talk about a very iconic American shoe company called Converse. Around 1908, a man named Marquis Mills Converse opened the Converse Rubber Shoe Company in Malden, Massachusetts. Specializing in winterized rubber soled footwear for men, women and children; Marquis was putting out 4,000 shoes a day by 1910. In the year 1915 the company started designing athletic shoes for tennis. Later in the year 1917, the company experienced an oil boom of success by putting out the now famous Converse All-Star basketball shoe. The consumers went nuts. Soon after a basketball player by the name Charles H. “Chuck” Taylor complained to the company of having sore feet. He was quickly hired as a salesman traveling around the United States promoting his signature shoe. Do I even have to tell you the name? You should know this – all the pieces are there. They’re not called “Chuck Taylor’s” for nothing, hint, hint.

Then the war happened. World War II was in full swing and the company switched their focus to producing rubberized footwear for the military. Converse became known as a distinctive American image company. Everything was going great until around the 1970s when other shoe companies erupted onto the scene, such as Adidas, Puma, Nike and Reebok. These brands had much more “radical” designs that left converse looking simple and less creative to consumers. Converse was no longer the official footwear of the National Basketball Association. This slow decline lasted well into the 2000s until having to file bankruptcy in the year 2001. It seemed Converse was done.

A new team of designers were introduced and within only three years, the company was back. So much in fact, Nike bought them out for over 300 million dollars. Boo-ya! Life is good again.

Today I’m showing you the Jack Purcell, Johnny OX Goblin Blue. At a hundred bucks a pop, this shoe is a re-worked version of an older Jack Purcell Johnny model. This shoe comes with a premium cotton canvas upper with opaque overlay on the side panels. Also included are tortoise shell eyelet accents and a striped heel tape. Always sticking to the classic Converse touch, this shoe carries the iconic rubber toe shell. This is what makes the company stand out from the rest. So tell me, what are you waiting for?