Paul Van Doren

Paul Van Doren is the founder of Vans, a shoe company in the United States.

Early life

Paul Van Doren is one of the two children of Johnson and Rena Van Doren. His father was an inventor while his mother was a seamstress.

Van Doren dropped out of school at the age of 14, when he was in the eighth grade. Interested in horses, he went to the race tracks every day; there, he became known as 'Dutch the Clutch.' ^[1] His mother then insisted that he get a job in a shoe factory.

Van Doren Rubber Company

In 1966, Van Doren, his brother James Van Doren, and their friends Gordon, Ryan Emmert and Serge D’Elia became partners in opening the first Vans. It took a year to build and set up the factory at 704 East Broadway in Anaheim. They offered only 3 different styles of shoes when they first opened; their prices ranged from $2.49 to $4.99.^[2] Vans had about 70 stores in California by the end of the 1970s.^[3] Van Doren ran the company until 1976, when James Van Doren took over.

References

• http://www.sneakerfreaker.com/feature/history-of-vans/2/
• http://sneakers.about.com/od/brands/p/Vans.htm
• http://www.the-house.com/portal/vans-history/
• http://www.vans.net.au/wawcs0130206/History.html