Airwalk

Infobox_Company
company_name = Airwalk
company_type = Public
company_
foundation = 1986
location = Denver, Colorado
key_people = Bruce Pettet
products = shoes, apparel
homepage = [http://www.airwalk.com/ http://www.airwalk.com/]

Airwalk is a boardsport (ie. Surfing and skateboarding) footwear company based in Denver, Colorado. It was established in 1986 by Bill Mann and George Yohn. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the company made skate shoes, t-shirts, snowboard boots, and other products, and sponsored professional skaters including Jason Lee and Tony Hawk.

In the mid-90's, Mann left the company. After his departure, the decision was made to "go mainstream" and focus on a more general audience rather than just creating shoes for sport enthusiasts. There was a brief rise in sales, but some people loyal to the brand found the mainstream designs questionable.

In January of 2004 Collective Licensing International was formed around the purchase of the Airwalk Brand. They claim their focus was to purchase iconic action sports brands and return them to their roots by re-introducing past product design and focusing on the Youth board sport culture. Purchasing brands such as Vision Streetwear, Sims Snowboards, and several others, Collective Licensing began to market the 'new' Airwalk aggressively in print magazines and online. A study by the NPD Footwear Consumer Panel found that Airwalk was ranked third in worldwide sales of skateboarding shoes behind Vans and DC Shoe Company in revenue, and second worldwide in terms of units.

In March of 2007 Collective Licensing International. was acquired by Collective Brands International., owners of Stride Rite and Payless Shoe Source, though the Airwalk brand is still being managed and maintained autonomously by Collective Licensing International.

According to their dealer locater the brand can be found in hundreds of various specialty shops, retail chains, and countries around the globe.

External links

* [http://www.airwalk.com/ Official Airwalk Site]