| In Marchof 1966, the first Vans shoes were | | | | The promising and successful era during the 1970s |
| manufactured in a small locally owned store in | | | | encouraged the owners of Vans to expand their |
| Anaheim California known as The Van Doren | | | | market in the 1980s to other extreme sports like |
| Rubber Company. That day, Paul Van Doren and | | | | wakeboarding and motocross. Unfortunately, they |
| three of his business partners sold 12 pairs of | | | | ended up biting off more than they could chew. |
| their Vans deck shoes, known as the Authentics | | | | After exhausting all of the companies resources |
| today. The shoes were ordered by the customer, | | | | and accumulating a rather large debt, Vans was |
| manufactured, and ready for pick-up all in the | | | | left with no option but to file bankruptcy in 1983. |
| same day. It was just the beginning of Vans | | | | Despite their downturn, Vans bounced back a few |
| Footwear and nobody, including the owners, ever | | | | years later after successfully repaying all of their |
| expected their popularity to explode so quickly. | | | | debts and creditors. The company was sold to a |
| By the 1970s, Vans was creating more than just | | | | number of other people over the next two |
| skateboarding shoes, and began branching out into | | | | decades, until most recently they were acquired |
| the BMX market. During this decade, Vans | | | | by co-founder Paul Van Doren's son, Steve Van |
| Footwear added a few more popular shoes to | | | | Doren, for an estimated $396 million. |
| their roster, including the #95 and #44 shoes, | | | | Nowadays, Vans is still considered by many |
| which are now known as the Era and Slip-Ons | | | | people, skateboarders or not, to be some of the |
| respectively. The Era shoes were a huge success | | | | best, most durable, comfortable and affordable |
| partly due to the fact that professional | | | | sneakers on the market. Even though this |
| skateboarders Tony Alva and Stacy Peralta | | | | company had it's share of bad years, they have |
| actually helped with developing the design. By the | | | | proven time and time again that they are not |
| time the 1970s were over, Vans had almost | | | | only here to stay, but also a force to be |
| become a household name in California and | | | | reckoned with. |
| opened up 70 stores across the state. | | | | |