words & interview_Nick DePaula

More than six years have passed since Nike Inc. bought the struggling Converse brand for $305 Million, and despite the outspoken critics of the acquisition, it’s turned out to be quite a smart move on the part of The Swoosh, as Converse posted a revenue of $915 Million this past year, up 26% from the year prior even. It’s hard to imagine the iconic brand and former official footwear company of the NBA during the 1970’s was facing absolute bankruptcy at the start of this decade, but the outlook was pretty grim at the time.

There seemingly was no possible way the originator of the Chuck Taylor All-Star could ever go out of business, but after the brand’s last surviving US-based All-Star factory in Lumberton, North Carolina was closed in March of 2001, most people had written Converse off entirely. For many, it was simply a matter of wearing American-made sneakers. The shoes had become as much a part of pop culture tradition as any other one consumer good. “If Converse wants to only use sweatshops like all of the other brands, I’m done with them,” people said bluntly. Others looked to the brand’s failing campaigns like its Helium-based hoop shoes as general ineptness. They had been trying to reinvent their glory years of the 70’s and 80’s with a legendary cast of athletes like Dr. J, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, and even more recently, Larry Johnson, but weren’t able to find success with newer products, as Nike Basketball, Reebok’s Iverson line and the newly formed Jordan Brand took off.  Either way, the brand was in disarray, with no set direction or foundation for the future. But, they had a heritage, and they had the All-Star franchise, so future investors were still sure to be interested.

It was the 2001 purchase of the company out of bankruptcy, valued at $117.5 Million, by a group of investors led by Marsden S. Cason, the former CEO of The North Face, that helped to bring the brand back to some promise. Through a couple of shrewd business moves — they halted all domestic manufacturing and retail operations and outsourced all production instead with third-party vendors in Indonesia and the Far East — the brand was returning to profitability for the first time in years. As an emerging business opportunity, Nike intervened and bought the brand for what is still considered a rather fair price. Cason and his business partners surely partied like hell after the huge sale, grunge kids globally cringed at the thought of a mega-corporation like Nike buying their beloved Converse, and Swoosh execs were already in the swing of things and eager to push forward the once-revered company. “Converse is one of the strongest footwear brands in the world, with a great heritage and a long history of success,” began Tom Clarke, Nike’s president for new business ventures at the time, in a statement announcing the acquisition. “Converse management has done an excellent job of re-establishing this beloved brand with consumers and we look forward to supporting them as they continue to implement their growth strategy.” The lifestyle sector and Chuck Taylor business was surely a selling point in the sale, but Nike was also looking to expand on Converse’s performance footwear portfolio.

Enter the 2003 NBA Draft, and a sudden resurgence for Converse Basketball with the additions of  rookies Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Kirk Hinrich, Mike Sweetney, and Troy Bell. Nike has always been known to throw some dollars at endorsement athletes, but a squad filled with potential hadn’t been seen from Converse in nearly twenty years. While not all went on to become star players, it’s definitely fair to say that Wade, Bosh and Hinrich far surpassed expectations right from the jump. With Bosh bouncing just a few years in, having Wade and Hinrich amongst its athletes was still a huge advantage for the re-emerging brand. Just three years later, Converse was able to celebrate the hugely successful Converse Wade I, all the while Dwyane was hoisting a Larry O’Brien collectible and complementary NBA Finals MVP trophy. During the summer of 2003, not one person could have predicted the future success of Converse or Wade, and surely not the monumental memories they were already enjoying together.

While the Converse brand has been off and running ever since Nike stepped into the picture, once again we’re at a time of transition. Dwyane Wade worked his way out of his contract over the summer to join the Jordan Brand. Bosh has been long gone from the portfolio, and Orlando Magic point guard Jameer Nelson is the latest to defect. On an even more broad view, the Converse Basketball design team just last fall has left its third floor digs in The Ken Griffey Jr. Building of Nike’s World Headquarters in Beaverton, and have all relocated to Converse’s North Andover, Massachusetts-based headquarters. They’ve left behind the technological resources of the Nike Sports Research Lab and Innovation Kitchen as a result, with the hope of a more consistent brand story by way of design.

With a wave of uncertainty surrounding the brand with Wade’s departure still relatively fresh, just where is Converse Basketball headed? Sole Collector caught up with Molly Carter, Converse’s Director of Basketball Marketing & Communications, to find out how they’re responding to the loss of DWade, what’s in store this fall with its new Balls Technology, and what the future holds for the Star Chevron.

Nick DePaula: Can you talk about the return of the Star Chevron and why we’re seeing the reemergence of that branding?
Molly Carter: Well, the Star Chevron went away before any of us were really at Converse, so we’re not sure why that decision was really made in the first place. Obviously it’s the basketball mark that’s iconic for Converse and is our history in the game, so bringing it back was really a no-brainer. It’s what people recognize in basketball and it’s our most recognizable symbol. Really, it’s great timing for the Star Chevron to come back because Converse has a new look, a new feel and a new attitude. I think there’s no better way to say that than making a statement with your logo, and changing it up and being different. We’ve always been the brand that’s about originality and creativity, and we really want to start bringing that attitude into basketball a bit more. It’s kind of a great kick-start to tell people that we have something new going on.

And what categories will we be seeing the Star Chevron in?
It’ll be used in Basketball, Skate and Running, so it’s our more active divisions. We’ve got Chuck Taylors and Jack Purcells as categories at Converse, and then we’re going to have the Star Chevron business, so under that will be Basketball, Skate and our Running shoes.

In hoops, the big story over the summer was the loss of Dwyane Wade. How do you think your team reacted when you guys first found out?
Everyone has worked with Dwyane for a long time, and we’ve worked with him since day one in 2003. Part of you feels sad to not work with him anymore, because he is a great guy, but then part of you feels happy for him too, you know, he is a Chicago guy and he worshipped Jordan growing up. You know that it’s just extremely exciting for him to join Jordan. So we feel happy for him, but also sad that we don’t get to work with him on a daily basis.

For us, we made the decision to really get back and put some weight behind basketball in 2003. We went out and signed five guys originally, with Dwyane being one of those. Dwyane went fifth in the draft, but no one really knew that he was going to become a champion within the first few years of his career. He skyrocketed, and we kept up with him, but I think it kind of happened sooner than we were ready for, and I think we did a great job responding to the market and kids really responded to having a Wade signature shoe. It kind of took us into a high priced category that we didn’t necessarily want to play in. I think we had a great ride with Dwyane, and you do wish him the best, but then you kind of take a seat back and realize that this can be good for Converse too. We can focus on where we want to be, and that is that democratic price point. When you have a player like Dwyane, you’ve gotta go a little more higher priced and signature. I think it’s a comfortable move for everybody really.

And was it something that happened overnight or were you guys able to see the writing on the wall?
No, no, it happened pretty quick. [laughs] It wasn’t something that had been on the burners for awhile or anything like that, it was just a decision coming from high up on the ladder, and it was kind of like, “Yeah, that makes sense for everybody.” He’s a great athlete to join the Jordan portfolio, so I think those guys are really excited, and it literally happened real fast. It wasn’t stewing.

Are you guys looking to replace him or will you just be sticking with the current stable that you have?
Well, you can never replace Dwyane. [laughs] We’re having a lot of conversations now about what kind of NBA athletes would really represent the Converse brand very well. We’re always positioning ourselves as the brand for the optimistic rebel. The brand for the person who wants to affect positive change and do things a little bit differently, so we’re really taking a deep dive and looking at the NBA roster and seeing who could be a good fit for us moving forward. There’s no time table on it, and we’re being careful choosing and doing the right thing, so it might be awhile that you hear something from us about it.

And when Wade was there, there was the Wade signature and then also the Wade Team line, partly because of his connection to Marquette. It’s also my understanding that Marquette will switch to Jordan Brand. Are you guys looking to play in that college realm still?
Yeah, they’ll wear Jordan Brand, and that’s part of that conversation about which NBA guys could be our athletes and be our ambassadors. Part of that whole conversation is the NBA as one tier of it, college as well, and we’re working with somewhere in the neighborhood of fifty high schools this year, so we’re really trying to build on that.

Fair enough. And how’s the relationship with JC Penney going so far? Elton’s shoe will be dropping there of course. [To check out our interview with Elton Brand about his new Converse EB2 -- Check Here]
That has been tremendous actually. The shoe sold fantastically last year, the EB1, and we want to put forth some really high quality products at price points that are kind of palatable for people. It’s been an amazing partnership, and I think JC Penney was really excited to get a player of Elton Brand’s caliber and his product exclusively in their stores. Elton is such a quality guy and it makes sense for them too. They’re big in their after-school program efforts, and Elton does a lot of charity work and it seemed like a natural fit. We’ve got the EB2 that’ll be in stores now, and we’re only hoping that Elton plays a little bit longer this season and gets good use out of the EB2. [laughs]

So we’ll be able to look forward to his line continuing on at JC Penney and keeping at around the $65 level?
Yup, it’ll be the same deal as we move along, and they’ll be $65, yeah.

Switching gears a bit, let’s talk about Balls. How long ago did the R&D begin on the technology, and was that something that was a specific request while Converse was still on the Nike campus?
I don’t think it was a Nike campus request, but we were hearing from retailers that that was something they wanted to see from Converse. It was something that was important to them on their shoe walls, and we’re always taking into consideration their input when looking at product. We’d been talking about it for the past few years now, and there’s been lots of healthy debate about it and what it should be called. [laughs] It’s done well, and the retailers have been really positive about it and are excited about it. It’s a great visible technology, but yet it’s still, in a Converse way, understated and not obnoxious in any way. I think it’s a nice complement to our footwear without really changing aesthetically the heritage of Converse.

And what were some of the names you guys were toying with, if Balls is the one that made it?
Oh god, there were hundreds up on the wall. You get to a point where there’s so many technology names out there, and you don’t want to seem like you’re copying somebody else. We had them all though.

What price point will we be seeing product that feature Balls? Will it be more of a $75 and up technology?
The higher priced shoes will be on those premium uppers. Really, we’re trying to stick to $80 and under as best as we can, for both team shoes and in-line product. Hopefully, crossing fingers, in the future you won’t be seeing anything above $80, outside of obviously those premium versions and doing uptakes of stuff.

Can you talk about the marketing plan for Balls and the events or ads we’ll be seeing?
We’re kind of doing a shift in the advertising. A lot of the big TV campaigns, you won’t be seeing that from us. We’re really focusing on the digital and print. We did an event in August called Band of Ballers, and it was several musicians playing in a real gritty 3-on-3 tournament in a non-air conditioned gym. Looking at Converse as a brand, we’ve got Chuck Taylor, obviously a very popular shoe amongst artists and musicians. So, how do we bring our basketball business to those loyalists as well? It’s funny, because all of the basketball players wish they were musicians and all of the musicians wish they were basketball players, so we talked about how we have these great relationships in the music industry and we talked about showcasing our newest products to these guys. It turned into a nice event to launch the EVO. Right now we’ve got a lot digital ads running to support it.

So with Wade leaving, and the Balls platform being around $80, is it safe to say we won’t be seeing innovation from Converse at the $90 and $100 levels anymore?
No, you won’t, but I think that’s something we’re proud of, because you’re going to have the same high-tech quality basketball shoes, but your pockets won’t be empty to get them. A testament to that is Kirk in the playoffs. He didn’t wear the EVO all season, and kudos to him, he busted out a new shoe heading into the playoffs, which I think makes a statement about it, that he felt comfortable enough in it to make a change right before the playoffs. It’s a great, quality shoe, and it doesn’t have that $100 price tag on it.

I played in the Wade IV last year and I really liked that Heel Suspend Technology. Is that something we won’t be seeing anymore either?
I wouldn’t anything is ever done for in the land of Converse basketball. Right now, we’re kind of looking ahead, and the next two seasons is really focused on Balls technology, but I don’t think anything can ever be ruled out.

Yeah, that was a shoe that was real enjoyable to play in, but then it’s tough when it’s not a visible thing and the retailers are strapping you for that.
It’s a testament to our guys, because the comfort of our shoes has been something that’s been a focus for awhile now. Even without a visible technology in most cases, they’ve worked to build up the sockliners and make a great shoe without it. Now, adding that in will help to please a lot of people, but it doesn’t stray far from our focus of always making a comfortable shoe.

It was my understanding that Wade was going to lead the innovation past the EVO with the Wade V featuring Balls. Now that he’s gone, where does that shoe sit and will we be seeing a debadged version of it release?
There’s still talk about the Wade V here, and we had already started the development of the Wade VI actually. The V is definitely going to be moving forward. It’s a really good looking shoe and I think everyone is going to be excited when they see it. There’s some people that want to pay respect to the Wade legacy and let the Wade V just be the Wade V and not just take logos off and put it out as something else, but it is a good shoe, so I think the product team is taking a look at what some options for it might be.

The Weapon is obviously a big part of this season in the EVO. Are we going to be seeing other past heritage stuff be updated with Balls, like the Pro Leather maybe?
Really the focus for the product team right now is building a functional basketball shoe with a lifestyle upper. You’re going to see some stitch for stitch retro stuff coming out from us in the next couple of years, but going in line with the EVO, you’re going to see some pretty recognizable and popular basketball shoes from our past, but repurposed for today’s game. This is kind of the start of a new mindset for Converse basketball.

Concerning retail, where’s Converse most easily accessible?
EVO is primarily at Finish Line and Eastbay, but we’re at all of the other mall stores and independent accounts.

When Converse was brought into Nike Inc, it was also able to launch with Jordan Brand and Nike Basketball at House Of Hoops stores around the country. What’s the presence of Converse going to be like in the future at House Of Hoops now that Wade is gone and Elton’s shoe is exclusive to JC Penney?
I think it’s kind of our goal to make that work and be a bigger presence there. Personally, I’d like to see us get a bit more presence there, and I think that’ll start happening as we go along. We’ve been in a little bit of a transition, there’s no bones about that, but as we kind of get these products rolling and get our technology out there, the House Of Hoops is a great place to tell that story.

What’s been the biggest shift been since Converse Basketball moved off of the Nike campus and back to Massachusetts?
It was always so integrated that I haven’t really noticed that much of a difference. I think it’s been helpful for the design team to be in the building now though, and I think you’ll see more of that true Converse look and feel come back a bit more now. You kind of drink the Kool-Aid when you’re in the building a bit more. [laughs] So you’ll be seeing the Star Chevron come back and us repurposing our basketball uppers on more technical chassis. You’ll get more of that coming out of us. Some opinions were that we were starting to look like Nike and Jordan a bit, with some of our shoes, so those comments will start to go away.