Most shoes are instantly forgettable. There are exceptions-clean, pristine Sam Smiths, Bean's duck boots. Likewise, Vans' thick-soled skateboarding sneakers, which are, somewhat improbably, more relevant and prevalent now than at any other point in the company's almost half-century of existence. Such longevity wasn't always assured. "I like to joke that we've had a checkered past," says Vans President Kevin Bailey, a pair of the company's kicks in his hands: iconic black-and-white checkerboard ones, recently reengineered for greater comfort at roughly half the weight. On his feet, a similar pair in rainbow checks.
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