Vans Fashion story

Brothers Paul Van Doren and James Van Doren, along with partners Gordon Lee and Serge Delia, officially opened The Van Doren Rubber Company, now known as Vans, on March 16, 1966, at 704 E. Broadway in Anaheim, California. Both Paul and James were born in Massachusetts where they worked for the Randolph Rubber Manufacturing Company—Paul for 20 years and James for 10. The first footwear manufacturer to produce a skateboarding sneaker, Randolph debuted the Randy “720” in 1965. The Randy “720” was nearly identical to a Keds sneaker, except it featured a reinforced “TUFF TOE ’N HEEL” made with “RANDYPRENE” rubber for additional traction since, at the time, skateboards lacked grip tape. The Randy “720” was also the official sneaker of the National Skateboard Championship Inc. and was worn by some of the competitors in the 1965 International Skateboard Championships in Anaheim, California.