and How Vans Custom Culture Funds Art Education One Sneaker At A Time
In an article written by Jessica Wilt for the ARTSblog published on April 11, 2014, Jessica interviews Scott Byrer, Marketing Manager of Vans Custom Culture Shoes and how their support of art education takes place with their partnership of Americans for the Arts.
"JW: I’d like to know more about the history of Vans and how the founders were inspired to launch a sneaker company.
SB: Vans was founded in 1966 by Paul and James Van Doren, Serge Delia and Gordon Lee. The company started small, with one store originally selling shoes directly to the public. In those days, customers were able to walk into a store and select their own custom shoe colors! This originality and creativity has remained an integral part of the Vans brand DNA to this day. The company grew quickly, being the first shoe brand to create a product specifically for skateboarding and as such, we’re known today as the original action sports footwear and apparel company, with collections including authentic footwear, apparel, accessories and snowboard boots that are sold globally in more than 170 countries. If you're curious to see a visual story about the history of Vans, you can check out a video our production team created on our Off the Wall TV site. Read more...
"Our work environment is incredibly creative. The mantra we live by daily at Vans is “Off The Wall” which directly translates to thinking and living creatively. Through programs like Custom Culture, we try to expose young people to the fact that creative careers exist and one need only look as far as the halls of Vans HQ to prove that." ~Scott Byrer
