"In my mind, the sneaker was perfected with the Converse Chuck Taylor, the high-top. There have been attempts to upgrade the Chuck Taylor-the Chuck 70 and the First String -and I don't care for any of them. The OG can't be beat. The slimmer silhouette and high-top look as good with shorts as with pants. They're cheap. You can beat them up. They're great for a workout, and fine for anything that's not a timed run or hardcore pickup game. And, crucially, you can find them in any city in America. In a culture based on limited-run releases, the Chuck Taylor is the last great everyman sneaker."
"I don't think there's anything wrong with caring about and buying sneakers, but if you're hunting for Hokas or chasing the hottest fashion sneakers, I assume you're the victim of the marketing machine. I've been conscious of this stuff for a decade at this point, and I've already lived through numerous re-issues of Tinker Hatfield designs. You are being sold the same thing over and over while being told it's exclusive and you have to have it. Why not just buy a styl"
"When I was a kid, I spent plenty of paychecks on Yeezys and Air Maxes. It was a core part of what got my friends and me into fashion. It’s not something I should think. If you are a sneakerhead, you'd be in the right to hate me; I accept that. But aren't you at all interested in hearing me out?"
The Converse Chuck Taylor high-top is presented as the perfected sneaker, with later upgrades like the Chuck 70 and First String not matching the original. The high-top slimmer silhouette works with both shorts and pants, and the shoes are inexpensive and durable enough to be worn hard. They are suitable for workouts and for everyday use that does not involve timed running or intense pickup games. The model is also easy to find in any city in America, making it a true everyman option. The piece criticizes sneaker hype and limited-run marketing, arguing that repeated re-issues sell the same designs while claiming exclusivity.
Read at Esquire
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]