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K-Swiss, Inc. is an American
athletic shoe Sneakers (also called trainers, athletic shoes, tennis shoes, gym shoes, kicks, sport shoes, flats, running shoes, or runners) are shoes primarily designed for sports or other forms of physical exercise, but which are now also widely used f ...
brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...
based in
Downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) contains the central business district of Los Angeles. In addition, it contains a diverse residential area of some 85,000 people, and covers . A 2013 study found that the district is home to over 500,000 jobs. It is ...
and currently owned by
Xtep Xtep International Holdings Limited (SEHK stock code: 1368) is a Chinese manufacturing company of sports equipment based in Kowloon Bay, Hong Kong. Established in 2001, the company was listed on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on ...
.


History

K-Swiss was founded in 1966 in
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
by
Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...
brothers, Art and Ernie Brunner. They became interested in
tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
after
emigrating Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...
to the United States. They imported the
patent leather Patent leather is a type of coated leather that has a high-gloss finish. The coating process was introduced to the United States and improved by inventor Seth Boyden, of Newark, New Jersey, in 1818, with commercial manufacture beginning Septe ...
tennis shoes from the Swiss Kuenzli shoe manufacturer, renaming their company K-Swiss (K is for Kalifornia). K-Swiss purchased the majority stake of Australian brand
Royal Elastics Royal Elastics is a brand of athletic and leisure shoes that fastens with velcro and elasticated cord instead of laces. History The company was founded in 1996 by two Australians who realised there was no need for laces in sneakers, and produce ...
in 2001. In 2003, they acquired 100 per cent ownership of the company and in 2008, sold it to Taiwanese businessman, Eric Ma, who then declared bankruptcy in 2014, and refused to pay the rest contracted money, but transferred the brand's ownership to his mother. In January 2013, the company — which posted $195 million in losses between 2009 and 2012 — was sold to Korean firm E-Land World Limited for $170 million. The following May, E-Land named a new executive team to oversee the newly formed K-Swiss Inc., including Truman Kim as chairman and Larry Remington as president and CEO. On June 1, 2015, K-Swiss acquired
Supra Footwear Supra was an American skate shoe brand founded in California by Angel Cabada in partnership with professional skateboarders. Korean fashion retailer F&F acquired the global trademark of Supra in October 2020. History Supra was launched in 2006, b ...
. In August 2019, E-Land Footwear USA Holdings Inc. and consequently K-Swiss was acquired by
Xtep Xtep International Holdings Limited (SEHK stock code: 1368) is a Chinese manufacturing company of sports equipment based in Kowloon Bay, Hong Kong. Established in 2001, the company was listed on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on ...
International Holdings Limited.


Marketing

In the 1990s, Steven Nichols boosted K-Swiss's marketing budget, and hired a number of key individuals from large companies, such as
Procter and Gamble The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational Final good, consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter (industrialist), William Procter and James Gamble (industr ...
. Award-winning Creative Director Mindy Gale led her NY based agency team in developing and producing K-Swiss advertising and publicity campaigns from 1997 until 2008. The "I Wear My K-Swiss" multi-media campaign ran for five consecutive years, targeting young urban consumers in print and on TV. A re-branding campaign featuring
Anna Kournikova Anna Sergeyevna Kournikova ( rus, Анна Сергеевна Курникова, p=ˈanːə sʲɪrˈɡʲejɪvnə ˈkurnʲɪkəvə, a=Anna_kournikova.ogg; born 7 June 1981) is a Russian former professional tennis player and American televisio ...
rolled out in 2007. A 2011 advertisement, featuring
Danny McBride Daniel Richard McBride (born December 29, 1976) is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter and producer. He starred in the HBO television series ''Eastbound & Down'', '' Vice Principals'', and ''The Righteous Gemstones'', also co-creating th ...
as fictional character Kenny Powers, drew attention for its use of profanity. In September 2014, the company unveiled a new marque. The new identity was created by a recently appointed internal creative team and plays up the company's heritage as an American tennis brand. All aspects of the new brand's design, including its 1966 typeface and tennis court colour palette, hark back to this identity. The company has been sponsoring events that appeal to their market as well as events which are likely to shape buying attitudes and help generate a positive reaction. One example is the sponsorship of Ireland's first sneaker convention run by Dub City Sneakz in
Dún Laoghaire Dún Laoghaire ( , ) is a suburban coastal town in Dublin in Ireland. It is the administrative centre of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. The town was built following the 1816 legislation that allowed the building of a major port to serve Dubli ...
which K-Swiss sponsored. In 2016, K-Swiss president Barney Waters made it the brand's mission to "make sneakers for entrepreneurs." The brand furthered this marketing angle by launching a collaboration with entrepreneur
Gary Vaynerchuk Gary Vaynerchuk (born Gennady Vaynerchuk; November 14, 1975; , ), commonly known as Gary Vee, is a Soviet-born American entrepreneur, author, speaker, and Internet personality. He is a co-founder of the restaurant reservation software company Re ...
in 2017. The company has since launched campaigns with other entrepreneurs, including
Karen Civil Karen Civil (born November 8, 1984) is an American social media and digital media marketing strategist. She gained attention for creating and running Weezythanxyou.com, a website where the rapper Lil Wayne published letters to his fans while he ...
, Ben Baller, and Natalie Ellis. In 2019, K-Swiss debuted a shoe collaboration with TV series
Breaking Bad ''Breaking Bad'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Vince Gilligan. Set and filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the series follows Walter White (Bryan Cranston), an underpaid, overqualified, and dispirited hig ...
.


Sponsorships

;Tennis: *
Cameron Norrie Cameron Norrie (; born 23 August 1995) is a South African-born British professional tennis player, having previously represented New Zealand. He has reached career-high rankings of world No. 8 in singles (on 12 September 2022) and No. 117 in dou ...
*
Yulia Putintseva Yulia Antonovna Putintseva ( rus, Ю́лия Анто́новна Пути́нцева; , ''puh-TEEN-tseh-vah''; born 7 January 1995) is a Russian-born Kazakhstani professional tennis player. She is a three-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist (twic ...
*
Liudmila Samsonova Liudmila Dmitriyevna Samsonova ( rus, Людмила Дмитриевна Самсонова, , lʲʊdˈmʲiɫə sɐmˈsonəvə; born 11 November 1998) is a Russian tennis player. She also competed for Italy, from 2014 to 2018. Samsonova has a c ...
*
Alison Riske-Amritraj Alison Riske-Amritraj (née Riske; born July 3, 1990) is an American professional tennis player. She reached her career-high singles ranking of world No. 18 in November 2019 and won her first WTA Tour title in October 2014 at the Tianjin Open. ...
*
Lauren Davis Lauren Davis (born October 9, 1993) is an American professional tennis player. Known for her aggressive backhand, speed, and clay-court strength, she won her first title on the WTA Tour at the Auckland Open and reached a career-high singles ra ...


References


External links

* *
Kuenzli Schuhe (Swiss) History
{{Running Shoe Brands American companies established in 1966 Clothing companies established in 1966 Manufacturing companies based in Greater Los Angeles Companies based in Westlake Village, California Sporting goods manufacturers of the United States Athletic shoe brands Shoe brands Shoe companies of the United States Sportswear brands Companies formerly listed on the Nasdaq 1966 establishments in California 1990 initial public offerings 2013 mergers and acquisitions American subsidiaries of foreign companies