Stylish, versatile and durable— these things immediately come to mind upon seeing the Kickers’ collection of loafers, boots, sandals, sneakers and flats. But slipping on a pair of Kickers goes more than just being fashionable; wearing it means stepping into a revolution.

The 1968 French student revolution marked the younger generation’s outcry against the rigid ideals governing their country—they rejected all accepted ideas and stereotypes. Communism, academic freedom and social justice were their buzzwords. For a generation that shouted to everyone "we’ll wear what we want when we want to!" a pair of goody-goody shoes was the last thing that they’d want.

Coming across an ad of the musical Hair, which showed a group of barefoot adolescents wearing jeans and brightly colored American shirts, Daniel Raufast, together with the designer Jacques Chevallereau, was inspired to develop the first shoes that perfectly complement the hard-wearing and informal blue jeans wildly popular among the youth. They were out to make the OJB or the Original Jeans Boots.

They envisioned the OJB prototype to be rooted within a four-fold concept: a shoe to match the adolescents’ new lifestyle; multi-hued to match their colored shirts; made from natural raw material and can be worn by both sexes.

First, they chose the raw material nubuck because it is more supple than leather and was available in many colors. For the soles, they chose a tough, natural rubber crepe which is both solid and flexible. As for the shape, both did not want a low shoe so they chose an ankle boot. Jacques then incorporated everything into the shoe that made the jeans: eyelets, contrasting stitching, cut-outs and appliqué, fabric badges. They combined various colors from the nubuck range and soon had the prototype of the first shoe: an unlined two-color (unheard of in the 1970’s) ankle boot with crepe soles.

This daring move away from the black Sunday shoes, could have remained a dream; but Daniel Raufaust and Jacques Chevallereau were bold enough to take the next steps that have marked all successive generations. The Original Jeans Boots has evolved to become what is now known as Kickers.

Within one season, Kickers production capacity grew from 300 to 12,000 pairs per month. By 1974, Kickers were selling in over 70 countries. Today, new ways of behaving have replaced the old, new generations have taken over and fashion has changed a number of times, but Kickers is still kicking.

Kickers is the stylish, versatile and comfortable footwear for virtually every occasion. Visit any of their branches located at Glorietta 4, SM Megamall, SM North Edsa , Robinson’s Place Ermita , Robinson’s Galleria and SM Southmall.