"Thirty-five years ago, young people could only wear serious school shoes," says Kickers directeur artistique Manfred Geserick, who was in town recently to find out what makes Kickers kick in the Philippines. "The founder who created the first Kickers shoe always wore very basic shoes. Then one day, he said to himself, ‘Pity, I’ve been punishing the kids from day one. Why don’t I invent something that is far more colorful and happy to wear?’ He wanted to do something for young people. He wanted to invent a shoe that was far more colorful and specific for the youth, which was completely rare at the time."
Thus, Kickers – oui, a French original – was born. And 35 years later, it’s very much alive and kicking!
Himself shod in a colorful sporty pair of Kickers, Manfred adds, "Kids know they all need back-to-school shoes, but in their free time, when they’re running around and enjoying themselves, they want something a bit more colorful."
So, it’s back to the shoe-stylish and shoe-cool lifestyle of Kickers. "As you can see in our poster, everybody’s jumping up in the air, really free and liberated," Manfred points at the huge poster inside the Kickers store at Glorietta 4, Makati. In this poster is Kickers’ first shoe, the one with four colors of green in it."
It’s an eye-catching, sole-lifting campaign poster that takes the onlooker to Kickers heaven. But make no mistake about it, Kickers did not just fall out of the sky – it’s got a pampered heritage and a philosophy that caters to the young (from toddlers to juniors to young adults going to school) and the young-at-heart.
Manfred, a first-time visitor to the Philippines, finds the country shoeper nice. "And what’s nice about the Philippines is that a lot of people here have a taste for colors, a good sense of color combination, which blends exactly with the spirit of Kickers."
You know a pair of Kickers when you see one. It’s got that stamp of originality written all over it. Notes a beaming Manfred, "At the end of the day, a brand’s strength is in its being original. Of course, it’s easier to follow the mainstream because you grab a little bit of the market. But then, you have to follow someone else all the time. It’s more important to follow your own roots as Kickers did 35 years ago. To reinvent something you can continue all your existing business life because it’s in the spirit of your brand. The most important thing is to be loyal to your spirit. It’s nice what other people do around you. You can pick up the hypes in the trends in general, but you should never imitate because if you do, you give in, you blend in with the others. Here’s a little bit of the secret of Kickers: You have to be always true to your spirit."
And bare your sole. Looking deep into its sole, Kickers makes sure it uses only the best quality materials and the most comfortable, too. Says Manfred, "Basically, when you buy a pair of Kickers, you buy quality. We use suede leather because you can get it in many beautiful colors. We use fine-quality leather that’s so durable you don’t use your Kickers for just one season. We use crepe sole, a different kind of rubber which is very flexible."
Manfred is quick to add, "In France, we hardly get our shoes back because it’s not often that they break. Besides, there’s a sewing at the sides, our shoes are not just glued. All our shoes go through a specific treatment."
Bless your sole! Your sole-searching days are over.
In France, according to Manfred, parents look for durability in a pair of shoes. On the other hand, kids go for the look. "So now, we have put those two things together – to be fashionable and still deliver quality."
People snap up a new pair of Kickers as soon as it’s out on the market because they know they’re getting value for money.
Born in Holland, this freelance stylist, who’s been art director of Kickers for four years now, has the world at his feet – and his shoes on people’s feet. Having traveled all over Asia, he observes, "I think in every country, people are fashionable. But it’s very narrow-minded to say that one style works all over because every community is unique."
While a huge percentage of Kickers products is designed in France, Kickers takes pride in its Asian designers. "We believe that locally, there are perfect designers who can integrate with Kickers," Manfred points out.
The more popular, nay hotter, the brand became, the more Kickers went into other things like clothes and accessories (think wallets, CD cases, etc.). "They go with the spirit of the footwear," says Manfred.
Certainly the right man for the job, Manfred is happy to take on the challenge of designing for a young market. "The young people are quite opinionated," he stresses. "You cannot dictate to the youth what they should wear. You have to seduce them to what to wear. You can seduce them with campaigns, but campaigns end with campaigns. The minute they have the shoes on their feet, they feel comfortable and they get compliments from their friends, that’s the real seduction. They give the initiative as to what we’re going to cater to for the next season. It’s a challenge that drives everybody who works for Kickers to renew himself all the time."
"We have a whole lot of customers, some go for a certain look, a certain style," says Johanns Tan, brand manager of Kickers, distributed in the Philippines by Kenrich International Distributor Corp, a member of the Primer Group.
Recently, the staff of Kickers from all over Asia got together for a conference in Manila – and happily compared notes (or should we say, footnotes). Johanns is happy to announce, "We’re now going regional. We’re the regional licensee for the brand so we handle Kickers for the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam and Hong Kong by next year. So everybody gets to come here and view the lines."
At the conference, Kickers gave a preview of its winter collection. Manfred describes, "The themes for winter include the tsar, the avant-garde, the perfect ’50s, Indian gold rush, Balkan glam/Nordic/East European, the Brit spirit. For every theme, there’s a color scheme. We have established six trends which are very relative to Kickers. We know that when people buy apparel, in the end, they want to mix it with their shoes so we have to think in terms of trends, to make the perfect combination or silhouette."
No wonder Kickers has been, uh, kicking butts.