Today we are speaking about an American brand, that has been selling sneakers since 1979. KangaROOS have gained their popularity thanks to small pockets with a zipper, located at the side of the shoe and big enough for a couple of coins or even for keys.
The initial design of KangaROOS was created by Bob Gamm, who appeared to be and architect and had a hobby of a jogger. Gamm used to run about 10 km per day, but all his sports clothes were very light – that’s why they were without pockets. This problem made Bob Gamm create his own type of sneakers with a pocket for keys and change. After that came the idea to market them, and at the beginning of 1980s Gamm sold 700,000 pairs of his shoes a day.
Gamm continued to improve his shoes, which led to some important innovations in sports footwear design in general. One of such new features, named Dynacoil, was a patented energy release system, that was even tested by NASA. Many competitive organisations (such as Nike) have included KangaROOS' ideas into their designs. The company also gained popularity among professional sportsmen – many of the US professional football and basketball players wore KangaROOS during the game. For example, among KangaROOS lovers were Walter Payton, O.J. Anderson, William (the Fridge) Perry (football), Ozzie Smith, Vince Coleman and Ron Darling.
By the end of 1980s the popularity of KangaROOS declined and the company was nearly pushed out from the market. However, today’s fashion of urban designs, popularization of sports and of course nostalgia of the devoted KangaROOS' fans managed to make the company return to the market. The reappearance of KangaROOS sneakers took place in 1990s.
Today, KangaROOS brand is available in 60 countries worldwide, however the strategy of the company has changed – its target today is a sports lifestyle footwear instead of professional sport equipment. Some of KangaROOS sneakers have a pocket on the side, others a little wallet, fixed at the ankle.
