502. THE SHOES WE WORE IN THE 1980s-1990s DECADES

BANDOLINO. You're a Step Ahead, 1984 Ad

Along with the fashion crazes of these decades—the Preppy, Oversized, Neon Colors, Streetwear, Baggy—came stylish shoes of  to go along with the hip, cool look. Local shoe stores like Confetti, Cardam’s, and Mendrez carried an array of popular brands that found favor with the young Makati working class. There were Sperry-copy cats, Doc Martens look-alikes, penny loafers a la Bass that could be found in Makati and Greenhills. Here are a few brands and their ads:

BANDOLINO SHOES, 1993 Ad

Bandolino Shoes Philippines was a local shoe store founded in 1983, and not to be confused with the U.S. brand. Now known as BND.

BULLDOG SHOES by Colours, 1993 Ad

Bulldog shoes were carried by Colours Handcrafted Shoes, created  by J.T. Manufacturing inspired by the British originals. 

ITTI Shoes, 1994 Ad

Itti Shoes Corporation was a retail business in the Philippines that sold footwear, clothing, and bags under the Caterpillar trademark. Later, itti was enmeshed  in a lawsuit with Caterpillar over trademark violation issues.

SWATCH SEASIDER, 1994 Ad

Swatch Seasider is the flagship brand of a legacy maker of men's casual and dress footwear in Marikina City, the shoe capital of the Philippines. All of their shoes are handmade using top-grade leather, particularly their signature boat shoes and sandals. Distributed by Trident International Trading, Corp. 

407. ZENCO FOOTSTEP: We Shoe The Philippines, 1983

ZENCO FOOTSTEP CORPORATE AD, 1983

The shoe store that boomed in the 80s and 90s selling such brands as Mighty Kid, Islander and Kaypee, started back in 1957 as Zenco Commercial (ZENCO) , a distributor of footwear founded by Yao Khapu. From a tiny store in Binondo, and later in Caloocan, Khapu moved to Divisoria to open his  first ZENCO FOOTSTEP on 26 May 1961. A strong marketing network propelled ZENCO FOOTSTEP’s business, pushing its diverse footwear and shoemaking products in major markets  nationwide.

 WATCH A 1991 ZENCO TVC HERE:

Courtesy: RoofDev Studios

When ZENCO partnered with Rubberworld Philippines in 1981, business grew even more, and soon ZENCO FOOTSTEP became the place to go for Rubberworld products that became hugely popular with the young and sport set, including Grosby, Adidas, Spartan sandals, Kaypee, Dockmaster, Mighty Kid shoes and fashions.

The closure of Rubberworld due to the financial crisis, the pull-out of Addias, and the renewed effort of SM stores to regain its foothold of the footwear business by building its giant malls  in 1990s, put a halt to ZENCO’s amazing run. Through all these, ZENCO FOOTSTEP remains in business today—more modest, but still viable-- in a few, but choice locations nationwide.

 SOURCES:

Zenco Footstep weebly: http://zfootsteps.weebly.com/about-us.html

 A short history of Zenco Footstep, https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/features/zenco-footstep-history-a00289-20220615

 Zenco Footstep TVC (1991) (Effects and footages), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNjf5jvpIrg, Uploaded by RoofDev Studios

 

396. America’s Foremost Name in Authentic Footwear: GENUINE CONVERSE CHUCK TAYLOR ALL-STAR, 1967 Ads

CONVERSE CHUCK TAYLOR ALL-STAR 1967

One of the most popular brands of athletic shoes from the 1960s, the Genuine  CONVERSE CHUCK TAYLOR ALL-STAR took Philippines ports by storm, as it carried the heritage as “America’s Foremost Name in Authentic Footwear”. Charles Hollis Taylor (b. 24 Jun 1901/ d. 23 June1969) was an American basketball player and basketball shoe salesman/product marketer who is best known for his association with the Chuck Taylor All-Stars, which he helped to improve and promote.

The design of the iconic Chuck Taylor All Star has remained largely unchanged since its introduction in the early 1920s. Styled for champions, CONVERSE rubber shoes are lightweight for great speed and comfort. 

They are understitched with web tape backstay for extra support. “Peg-top” upper gives support without binding the ankles. 

The shoes are equipped with protective toe guard, permanent set eyelets, and non-marking positive traction outsole.

 The first U.S. Olympic basketball team wore Chucks in 1936. At the height of their popularity,  CONVERSE CHUCK TAYOR ALL-STAR were endorsed by more coaches and worn by more players than any other athletic shoes. 

BRILLIANT MATCH, Converse Chuck Taylor All Star, 1967

As for Chuck Taylor, he was inducted into the Sporting Goods Hall of Fame in 1958, and after his death, was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

 SOURCES:

Wikipedia.com, Chuck Taylor: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuck_Taylor_(salesman)

History of Converse Chuck Taylor All-Stars:  https://www.opumo.com/magazine/history-of-converse-chuck-taylor-allp-star/

Chuck Taylor: You May Know His Shoes, But Do You Know His Story? by Chris Flook, Mar. 10, 2021

https://www.visitindiana.com/blog/post/chuck-taylor/

 

364. Sporty Fashion for Your Feet: SPARTAN FOOTWEAR, Print Ads 1960s

SPARTAN COMMANDER, THE MOST GUWAPO OF THEM ALL! 1963.

 

One of the most iconic athletic footwear brand from the 1960s-70s  is SPARTAN. It was so popular that the brand “Spartan” briefly became a generic name to refer to rubber shoes. SPARTAN was the rubber shoes of choice of many basketball teams and sports leagues, with many styles to choose from.

SPARTAN CHIRSTMAS AD, 1964

For example, there was the ‘Commander’ style, touted as “the most guwapo of them all”, with its colorful ankle patch and blue and red stripes. There was also a SPARTAN Speed Star, made for hardcourt action and agility. It eventually venture dinto other footwear like children and ladies’ shoes and sandals.

SPARTAN was made by KP Rubber Corporation located along Francisco St., in Caloocan City, but not much is known about the company. It folded up I the 1970s. The SPARTAN name is being used today as a brand for rain boots, and also by Reebok, for its line of all-terrain rubber shoes.

SOURCES:

Spartan Speed Star Ad: Pinterest.ph via Eduardo de Leon

322. Sun, Sand, and Sandals! SANDALS OF SUMMER, 1959-1962

BEACH WALK SANDALS, 1960. Most Popular Footwear in the World.

Long before high-end Havaianas and signature "flip-flops" came into fashion, there were the bright, all-purpose, cheap rubber sandal brands that we wore, available practically anywhere. These were our everyday footwear, but they were most useful for walking on the beach, strolling on the sand during summer excursions. These mass-produced footwear had basic constructions, consisting of rubber soles, and criss-crossed or straight straps, or a Y-shape thong. Since they all looked so similar, companies differentiated their brands by using attractive colors, decorative features, and slight design variations. Most were of rubber, although a few were made of plastic. This assortment of sandals print shows the bewildering number of sandals and styles produced during the late 50s to the early 60s decade.

BEACH WALK RUBBER SANDALS, 1959

HONGKONG SANDALS, 1961

SANDALIAS / ANCHOR SANDALS, 1961

SWALLOW SANDALS for that light-footed feeling! 1962

SWALLOW SANDALS, 1961

BANTEX, 1962

292. Childhoood Memories at our Feet: MIGHTY KID of RUBBERWORLD Phils. Inc. 1984

Rubberworld Philippines Inc. was once a giant shoe manufacturer of the country, maker of such iconic brands as Spartan, Kaypee,  Grosby and the super popular children’s brand –MIGHTY KID, launched in the early 1980s.

The fashionable kiddie shoes for school and play, caught the eye of parents and kids, with their snazzy color combinations, and Velcro straps that made the shoes so easy to put on. 

To top it all, a MIGHTY KID mascot pushed the brand to greater heights, a flying superhero who appeared in commercials, appeared in events and used in merchandising displays.

So successful was the brand, that MIGHTY KID expanded its product line from shoes to trendy children’s wear. As predicted, the kiddie fashions sold very well

 MIGHTY KID was an active advertiser, creating mainstream and seasonal advertise such as this Christmas commercial:

WATCH A MIGHTY KID TVC HERE: 

Uploaded by oblaxz2007, 14 March 2010 

In 1990, Rubber World employed rising young international singer and 1989 Junior Star Search champion  Josephine “Banig” Roberto to appear in a MIGHTY KID commercial. But 4 years after, plagued by internal turmoil that led to court cases, ceased its operations, leading to the demise of  MIGHTY KID Shoes. But children growing up in the 80s still remember the multicolored sneakers that they wore out in school and at play and the MIGHTY KID mascot who kept the brand flying high for a good number of years.

MIGHTY KID KIDDIE WEAR,1984

SOURCES:

Gilbert commercial. Rubberworld. Mighty Kid!, uploaded by oblaxz2007, 14 March 2010: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moTGzDnA4zM