Free Republic

Article Published July 21, 2003 Ballplayers would miss Chuck Taylors Story by Mike Peters Say is isn't so, Chuck. They took one more step this week in the plot to send thousands of former high school basketball players into the black hole of sports anonymity. Nike bought Converse. AirSwooshPumpUpLiteUpFancyShoes that cost $120 bought little ol' reliable Chuck Taylor All Stars. When many of us were just lads, playing high school ball in the 1960s before Nike came along, the best, most wonderful basketball shoes were the Chuck Taylor All Stars. Zeke Garretson knows. For years, the owner of Greeley's Garretson's...

<p>BOSTON — The company made famous by Chuck Taylor sneakers is getting a Nike (NKE) swoosh.</p> <p>Nike (search) announced Wednesday that it is buying Converse (search) for $305 million in a deal that gives the nation's No. 1 shoe maker an important piece of the growing retro footwear market: "Chuck Taylor All Star" sneakers. In return, Converse gets Nike's deep-pocketed backing and marketing depth.</p>

OS ANGELES --In a deal with cultural significance that far outweighs its monetary value, Nike Inc., the $10.7 billion-a-year maker of the world's highest-tech sneakers, will pay about $305 million to acquire Converse Inc., the 95-year-old maker of some of the world's lowest-tech ones. Nike will also assume some Converse debt. Converse posted $205.3 million in sales in 2002. This came mostly from the enduring popularity of the rubber-toed canvas Chuck Taylor All-Star sneakers that, for many high school and college kids, have come to represent the antithesis of Nike. Although the simple, $35 shoes boast high profit margins...