Chuck Taylor All Star II Will Come In Three New Colors Soon

Last Thursday, July 23, Converse unveiled the groundbreaking Chuck Taylor All Star II during a historic global launch in Boston. Converse CEO and President Jim Calhoun, Vice President-General Manager of Converse All Star Richard Copcutt and Converse Vice President-Creative Director of Global Footwear Bryan Cioffi were all present. Attendees received a first look at the innovative sneaker and got a chance to test out the new aesthetics of the silhouette.

The Converse Chuck Taylor All Star II combines durable new details including a Nike Lunarlon sock liner, padded tongue, super soft micro-suede lining and a premium canvas. The new fall 2015 Converse Chuck Taylor All Star II sneaker is now available globally at Converse retailers and online at Converse.com.

While in Boston, XXL spoke with Vice President-General Manager of Converse All Star Richard Copcutt and Converse Vice President-Creative Director of Global Footwear Bryan Cioffi to get the full details on the new Chuck Taylor II silhouette.

Were there ever plans of changing the overall look of the Chuck Taylor All Star when you guys started working on this second iteration?
Richard Copcutt: One of the values that we’ve worked on as a company, is about respecting our past and moving forward. I think this is the classic example of that. We’ve retained the iconic shape of the sneaker itself, so we think. Instantaneously, you recognize it as a Chuck, but our invitation to consumers is, “Come closer and take a look at it in more detail,” and you’ll spot the difference. This isn’t a sneaker that we would toy with lightly. It’s something that we definitely respect our past; we’re famous for it. Consumers love it. We have other avenues of business that we can explore different silhouettes with.

Bryan Cioffi: We talked about it a bit, but I think it’s really, really, really important with an icon. It’s not about us. It’s not about us putting our signature. If any of you today saw the hand of any of the people that worked on this, we failed. This is about you. This is truly about our consumers, so we got to make that decision, as Richard said, immediately. And we knew, in some ways, it made the challenge easier. And in some ways, it made it so, so hard. We had a room that was as big as this built out with every single detail on the wall. And we would sit and we would argue about every single thing; put that in, take it out, put that in, take it out. That’s how we really built this thing. We didn’t sort of just draw it and reveal itself.

With the addition of the Nike Lunarlon technology, is the Chuck Taylor All Star II a more sports-driven shoe?
RC: Yeah, I think today’s consumer is using their sneakers for a lot of different pursuits. So what we built into this thing, what we hope, is a functionality that allows them to do more of what they’re doing. The research that we did with the guys in a rock band, and through that band, we spoke to their family tree of connections, so more than one band. It was fascinating listening to them talk about what they want from their sneakers because they talk about stability, durability, traction, comfort in much the same way as you would hear from an athlete. So we’re not aiming this to get back on the NBA court; that’s not the goal of it. But we definitely think we’ve got a sneaker here that could perform to today’s needs of our consumer.

How did you guys come up with the name for the Chuck Taylor All Star II, and were there other names thrown around for the shoe?
BC: I’m going to tell you the real story. We actually had a meeting; we had a naming summit. We sat there, we argued, and we wrote on a board for hours and hours and hours. And Ian, our marketing guru, walks in, on his way to have a cigarette, and he goes, “What are you guys talking about? Call the damn thing Chuck II. I’m gonna have a cigarette.” And we were just like, “That’s it!” And it stuck ever since.

Should we expect Converse to create a Nike Flyknit-inspired shoe or some other technologies or new materials on the Chuck II?
BC:We can’t really foreclose some of the things that we have coming. The only thing I can say is that we are constantly working and we have things coming that you will absolutely be excited about.

Will there be any collaborations?
RC: We certainly have some collaborations coming. We’re inspired by our creative community. So yeah, we’re working on things and they’ll be coming out this year and next year. Our business plan is sort of to invent this Chuck II for the rest of this calendar year. We’ll obviously freshen the color palette as we move towards the holidays.

What other styles and colorways should we expect with the first push of the Converse Chuck Taylor II?
RC: In terms of initial offering, it’s in the four core colors: red, white, blue and black (high and low top). Then, we’re going to bring three additional colors before Christmas. There's also some really great stuff coming in spring 2016.

Will you be copping the new Chuck Taylor All Star II?