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Facts
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Top
Low Top
Extremely popular sneakers because of their price range, versatility when it comes to style, and freedom of movement. Almost everyone is guaranteed to have low-top sneakers in their shoe rotation.
Mid Top
Mid-top sneakers extend toward the ankle for a little more support and hold. These lie somewhere in the middle between low-top and high-top sneakers in terms of usage and popularity.
High Top
Sneakers with collars that go above the ankles for optimal hold and support are some of the most sought-after models in lifestyle shoes. Most of these shoes take their roots from basketball and have easily or fashionably crossed to mainstream wear.
Good to know
Regardless of cut, it's always good to start with sneakers that can be worn for the daily grind, also called as "beaters" by some, as these are usually cheaper, easy to clean, and still gives that lifestyle "edge" before going for those wallet-thinning models.
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Inspired from
Sports
Sneakers dominantly take their heritage from running, basketball, skate, tennis, training, hiking, and football. Still retaining a few of their performance-based technologies, these sneakers have transcended their respective niches and have successfully and popularly transformed themselves as staples of fashion footwear.
Casual
Sneakers designed for a laidback, "cool" vibe that is built for lifestyle wear right from the get-go.
Good to know
Brands are now blending elements of performance and casual appeal in basically every sneaker. One can hardly go wrong with a sports-inspired sneaker or a simple casual shoe.
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Collection
Good to know
Shoes sharing the same inspiration, history, materials, or technologies are routinely assembled under one compilation for the convenience of those who may wish to categorize or label their own collection as such. The classic collections like the Adidas Originals, Air Max 1, Air Force 1, new balance classic sneakers, and the Classic Leather head the pack of frequently asked about collections.
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Price$55
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Special editions
Rankings
Fit & Sizing
Converse Chuck Taylor All Star High Tops are unisex shoes with a wide selection of sizes to fit most foot lengths. The sizing system is based on men’s measurements which range from 3 to 18. The model tends to run larger than standard sizing, so users are advised to go down a half size for a better fit.
To convert from men’s sizing to women’s, buyers usually subtract a size and a half from their shoe size, but since these kicks reportedly run big, taking two sizes to two sizes and a half off may be better.
Since the shoes also have a flat sole—a trait common to retro sneakers—cushioned inserts might not only add comfort but provide a solution for the size difference as well.
Converse Chuck Taylor All Star High Top Style
Although once geared as performance shoes, Converse Chuck Taylor All Star High Top shoes have developed into lifestyle footwears that have attracted the notice of people from all walks of life, including celebrities in the grunge and pop culture scenes. The retro silhouette has a timeless look that is easily matched with everything short of a suit or gown. Colors are wide and varied so you can choose to your heart’s content.
Men
- For a cozy everyday look, match Chuck Taylor All Star High Top unisex shoes in black (Black/Black) or (Black/White) with ripped jeans and a beige knit or button-down shirt.
- To glam it up a bit, men can pair Converse Chuck Taylor All Star High Tops in white (Optical White) with a crisp cuffed shirt and trousers.
Women
- A boxy shirtdress paired with Converse Chuck Taylor All Star High Top in blue (Dazzling Blue) can give off a stylishly easy look to pull off.
- Women can wear also wear their high-top Chuck Taylors in pink (Plastic Pink) with a mini dress and a retro jacket.
Notable Features
Converse Chuck Taylor All Star High Top sneakers are classics that have been a wardrobe staple for most for decades. The shoes feature that simple but timeless design that appeals to people across social, cultural, and generational divides. When you look at Chucks, you are not just seeing shoes but also the development and progress of the sport of basketball.
Chucks may not carry any newfangled shoe technology, and there may be far better basketball shoes out there now, but these kicks will always have a spot in the hearts of everyone who treasure classics. And as anyone who’s worn these kicks know, these are comfortable and flexible shoes that are built to last.
Converse Chuck Taylor All Star High Top History
Converse Chuck Taylor All Star High Top shoes have a long and interesting history that covers, amazingly, more than a century. But to get to know the shoes, you must first get to know the company behind it.
Converse is a shoe company that was founded in 1908 by Marquis Mills Converse in Malden, Massachusetts. The company specialized in manufacturing galoshes and winter boots for men, women, and children, and they were doing quite well. By 1910, they were producing shoes daily, but it would still be five years before they would expand to manufacturing athletic footwear.
They adapted their rubber knowledge to sneakers in 1915, producing high-top silhouettes including a couple called ‘Big Nine’ and ‘Surefoot.’ In 1917, they produced a new silhouette that would change the face of basketball. They called it the ‘Non-Skid’—named after the diamond-patterned soles of the shoes that were supposed to be really grippy.
Non-Skid shoes had canvas uppers in a natural brown color, black trimmings, small rubber toecaps, and a high profile construction. These became some of the lightest basketball shoes during that time. They also sported round leather patches on the ankles with the brand’s ‘Big C’ logo, not as a way to announce the manufacturer of the shoes but to protect the ankles from bruising. It wouldn’t be until the year 1920 when they’d name this silhouette as the All Star.
In the same year that they changed the shoes’ name, they also launched them in an all black colorway with uppers made of either canvas or leather. The shoes weren’t originally intended for basketball but for the sport of soccer and netball (a kind of early version of basketball). Basketball was a fairly young sport then, having been conceived of barely 26 years before by a Canadian-American named James Naismith.
Sales of the kicks were slow at first because sneakers were only viewed as sportswear and not as something you’d put on for leisure. Although the unique construction of the shoes was something that wasn’t seen before and was deemed by a few to be good for the sport of basketball, the kicks never really enjoyed the success they did until Charles “Chuck” Taylor entered the scene.
Chuck Taylor: The man behind the brand’s most popular silhouette
Chuck Taylor was a basketball player who first came to the attention of Converse in 1921. The Akron Industrial League player who played for the Firestone Non-Skids had been wearing Converse Non-Skids since high school varsity. He entered the Converse store complaining of sore feet and departed it as a brand ambassador and salesman of the brand.
Chuck quickly saw the potential in the All Star silhouette and pitched the shoes wherever he went. He held basketball clinics all over the US, teaching teams the newly established rules of the sport, and subtly hinting that Converse shoes would give them the edge over their competition.
He also acted as player-manager for the Converse basketball team and managed to sell the shoes through creative marketing devices such as the annual Converse Basketball Yearbook. This yearbook featured new basketball concepts as well as photos of entire basketball teams that he met across the country. Of course, in the pictures, they were all wearing Converse shoes.
Not only did the yearbooks promote knowledge about basketball fundamentals, but they were also a clever ploy to sell the All Star. Due to Chuck’s exceptional marketing strategy, sales of the high-top sneakers skyrocketed. They became so popular that in the 60s, 90 percent of basketball players, from college to professionals, wore All Star High Top sneakers.
Converse recognized Chuck’s efforts by adding his name to the shoe’s ankle patch detail in 1934. The shoe was from then on known as the Chuck Taylor All Star, or just Chucks as many called them starting in the 70s.
Converse Chuck Taylor All Star
Converse Chuck Taylor All Stars have not gone unchanged over the century. Converse continually tweaked the design in the early years for better performance and according to feedback from players. In 1919, they refined the non-skid soles and added a corrugated pattern. They added cork insoles and double-reinforced foxings in 1922, corrugated edge sole design in the same year, ventilation eyelets in 1932, and they also gave the sneakers narrower shanks.
The company also dropped the ‘Big C’ logo and replaced it with the All Star patch. When players complained that the outsoles wore out too quickly, Converse added a pivot button which is still being used in some form or another on almost all of the basketball shoes still out on the market today.
In 1936, the brand came out with a white high-top version with red and blue stripes along the soles for the Olympics. This style proved to be so popular that Converse used it on all their Chucks from then on.
After the Second World War raged, the public sought to forget about it by focusing on sports. Sports, and basketball, in particular, became extremely popular. The Basketball Association of America was founded in 1946. In 1949, the league changed their name to the National Basketball Association. Because Converse Chuck Taylor All Star High Top sneakers had deep roots in the sport, they became the unofficial shoes of the NBA.
The silhouette would continue to reign supreme for many more years until the late 70s. By then, the shoes’ glory days in the basketball arena were almost over, but the shoes began to shine a lot elsewhere—on the feet of creatives and musical geniuses. The 70s were also the years when Chucks began to sprout new colors aside from their usual black and white. The sky was the limit concerning color, and at one point in time, there were about 500 versions of the kicks available.
The shoes have remained almost unchanged since the 40s, but they have been reinvented in many different ways since then—through the able use of a wide vast of colorways, collaborations with retailers and designers, the release of low-top and mid-top versions, and the launch of a silhouette with retro tweaks thrown in.
Additional Info
- As a testament to the shoes’ popularity in the game of basketball, in the first-ever NCAA game that took place in 1939, both teams were wearing Converse All Stars.
- In the first Olympic basketball game which was held in 1936, the American Team sported all Chucks.
- The band, The Rolling Stones, made the Chuck Taylor their official sneaker for their 1989 Steel Wheels Tour.
- The ankle patch which bears Chuck Taylor’s name was his idea. It was added in to provide more support for the shoes.
- The Converse All Star was the first model to feature a “non-skid technology.” This was in 1917.
- The shoes have graced the feet of a lot of NBA greats. They have also been seen sported by celebrities such as Kristen Stewart, Rihanna, and Snoop Dogg.