Designer and Retro Trainers at Discount Prices

k-swissBrand History

Art and Ernie Brunner were keen skiers from Switzerland who moved to Southern California where they spent much time playing tennis.

In 1966 tennis players both at Wimbledon and on amateur courts were still wearing the canvas shoes. The Brunner brothers set about creating their own performance tennis shoes.

The K-Swiss classic was sold as the first all-leather tennis shoe, with shock-absorbing insoles and a firm upper that would stand up to the fast yet powerful movements of the tennis players.

They targeted the Classic, at the top end of the tennis trainer market and sold them for $20 compared to the normal $8 price tag of other trainers around at the time.

The design was practical and has not changed all that much over the years.
The Classic consisted of three strong leather pieces for the upper, held in place by 5 narrow leather strips which stopped the shoes from stretching. The distinctive D-ring lace system was inspired by the mountain shoes. The shoe was completely white and finished off with a small Swiss flag on the heel.

K-Swiss began to enjoy a limited but steadily growing popularity in the US and generated great interest from a number of Japanese residents and tourists.
In the 1970’s, K-Swiss shoes developed an almost cult-like status in Japan, and over the next few years, K-Swiss opened up accounts in Japan and went-on to secure a production contract in Southeast Asia thus lowering production costs and making K-Swiss even more available to Asian markets.

Unlike other retail giants at the time, K-Swiss did not advertise. They had no media presence in magazines, on radio or television. They made no attempt to create consumer interest through colour-ranges, designs or logos. They simply concentrated on making shoes.

K-Swiss’s only real advertising tools were the players that wore the shoes both on and off the tennis courts. Renowned for their durability and reliability, K-Swiss stayed small but focused and were able to maintain their place in the growing athletic footwear industry.

In the 1980’s, company logos were no longer just ‘logos’ , they developed into ‘brands’, and branded merchandise was everywhere. Everyone wanted to be seen with clothing made by a brand. Adidas, Nike, Reebok and the other giants were producing everything from sweatshirts to basketball shoes – and gaining a mass market.

K-Swiss in comparison, were behind the times and their sales had slowed.
Enter Steve Nichols who was the president of Stride Rite at the time, makers of children’s shoes.

When Nichols saw K-Swiss shoes he liked them so much he tried to encourage Stride Rite to buy the faltering shoe company.

When he failed to persuade Stride Rite to take this step , Nichols resigned . Within 8 months he had raised more than $20 million to purchase K-Swiss , which he did in January 1987 .

Nichols recognised that K-Swiss was appealing to wealthier consumers, and that the almost non-existent styling was what made their shoes so popular.
Year after year ‘the Classic’ endured whilst trends from other brands came and went.

The key to saving K-Swiss was to do what K-Swiss had not done up till then - to advertise!

K-Swiss advertised in athletic magazines, billboards and on the radio of select cities and focused on it's trainers durability, simplicity and quality
Nichol’s strategy worked and between 1988 and 1989, K-Swiss increased its revenues by 72% while raising price point dramatically from $40 to $60 thus making K-Swiss shoes a ‘luxury item’.

Early 1990’s saw K-Swiss being granted two patent s, one of which was on t he ‘D-R Cinch lacing system’ (the multi-ring design where the shoe's laces were wrapped along the upper of the shoe ) . This gave the wearer more support during lateral movement. Such a lacing structure had been used by K-Swiss since the company's inception, and after 1992 no other company could copy it.

In 1993 K-Swiss introduced 5 new designs including 3 specifically for basketball and ‘the Belais’ and ‘the Belais-LT’ which were for the aerobic market.
K-Swiss had made the move from being a purely indoor footwear company, to producing shoes intended for tennis and track and field. In 1994 K-Swiss showcased 12 new designs intended for walking or light hiking. The ‘Davos’ collection was made up of 5 different styles and K-Swiss made the jump to start advertising in magazines for Backpackers and Trail-walking.

In 1996 K-Swiss developed their first TV advert to try and target a younger, more active market and by the late 1990’s they had sales of more than $116 million. The K-Swiss range is relatively limited in size compared to the giants of the trainer industry, but this maintains the exclusiveness of the image.

In 2002 K-Swiss introduced the ‘Tongue Twister’, a shoe with a reversible tongue at a simple twist which had major success. Today the American market can enjoy customising their own classic designs on the ‘MY K-Swiss’ website. The K-Swiss Classic used as a blank canvas, and with a range of colours to choose from anything from laces to the outsole can be changed!

Here at Trainerstation, we still stock the best range of K-Swiss and at the best prices! Why not take a look for yourself...