With the opportunity to develop a number of projects for Converse, I began by looking at some of the concerns that had been raised against the brand in the past. The biggest opportunity I saw was how to solve the Chuck’s problem of moisture getting into the shoe, and specifically how the shoes performed in the rain. The design brief I created for myself was, “How can I make a rain boot that eliminates water getting into the shoe, but still maintains Converse’s design language?”
Converse Rain Boot Concept
Opportunities
During the brainstorming process, one of the ideas that I returned to was how tricky it can be for kids to put on their rain boots. I had this image in my head of a parent trying to calm down a squirming child, trying to help them tie up their shoes, while the kid is already looking out the windows for the biggest puddle. I decided to narrow my focus slightly and create a rain boot that was easy and fast for kids to put on that also kept water out, and fit in with Converse’s design language.
Photo by Rupert Britton on Unsplash
Ideation
In trying to figure out the best way to keep water out of the shoe, I found that the biggest gap for water to get in was the tongue. By eliminating the tongue as well as any kind of lacing system, we can eliminate our main water problem, and the shoe becomes considerably faster to put on.
A splash of color on a rainy day.
By offering the rain boot in as many different primary colors as possible, kids can choose their favorite color to explore a rainy day in. Attaching the single upper piece to the iconic Converse sole makes the shoe instantly recognizable, as if it had always been a part of Converse.
