Converse’s Holistic New Approach Listens to Consumers, Puts Comfort First
In Converse’s next chapter, the company says consumers will enjoy a journey all about comfort.
Building on the success of its CX product series last year, Converse reports the collection has grown more than 15 times its original release to meet demand. According to the company, the proprietary comfort materials and technology, called the CX toolkit, includes the CX foam, CX stretch canvas and a rubber outsole to provide “next-level comfort benefits, ease of wear and a progressive design ethos to fuel movement.”
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Moving forward, Converse will be extending the CX toolkit to integrate varying levels of comfort to every footwear product. And by early 2022, the company stated all Chuck Taylor All Stars in the market will feature the upgraded benefits from the CX technology.
“At Converse, we are incredibly proud of our heritage, which serves as a point of departure for a design and innovation approach that’s pushing our brand to new space,” said Phil Russo, vice president of global design and innovation. “We are taking iconic favorites, including the Chuck Taylor All Star and the Weapon, and enhancing them with CX in response to consumer insights to drive comfort improvements. At the same time, the design team continues to explore, evolve and iterate our design language — creating future-forward styles with the new Aeon Active CX and delivering bold expression via the Run Star Motion.”
Furthering the company’s progressive attention to consumer needs, Brandis Russell, vice president of global footwear at Converse, said as the company evolves its approach has been “truly putting the consumer at the center. We think about how we drive benefit-led innovation to serve their everyday needs, and this is led through five key product concepts [which are], sustainability, inclusivity, exploration for performance and culture.”
According to the company, its 360-degree approach with CX has enabled Converse footwear to see advances in comfort, boosted impact absorption and longer-lasting wear. Using the company’s CX toolkit, 2021 releases include the Aeon Active CX, The Run Star Motion, The Weapon CX and The Chuck Taylor All Star CX.
Samuel Ross, founder of A-Cold-Wall, will also work with Converse on a collaboration, following the success of his previous collaborations with the company, for an “exploration-led design approach to the new Aeon Active CX” to create a collection at the “intersection of comfort and sustainability.” Ross’ Aeon silhouette will be released in late 2021.
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