VANS

Founded in 1966, in Anaheim, California, at 704 East Broadway, brothers Paul Van Doren and James Van Doren, Gordon C Lee and Serge D'Elia opened the first Vans store under the name The Van Doren Rubber Company. ... The first morning, twelve customers bought Vans skateboard shoes, now known as "Authentic".

For more than five decades, Vans has designed and created shoes for those who live their lives: skaters and artists, punks and businessmen. The brand is a link between people of all generations and all walks of life.

In 1982, Sean Penn appeared on the screen while Jeff Spicoli wore a pair of Old Skool briefs, now iconic checkerboard. "When I finally saw how they were going to be used in the Fast Times at the Ridgemont High billboard," writes Steve Van Doren, "with Sean Penn wearing the shoes and the soundtrack album with the checkerboard, I was on it. . Vans public relations director Betty Mitchell sent 1,000 pairs of shoes to radio stations across the country to give them when Jackson Browne's song "Somebody's Baby" plays. And Vans went from $ 20 million to $ 45 million almost overnight.