The conqueror comes from the country of cherry blossoms

Until now, the sneakers industry has been dominated by two names, adidas and Nike. The growth of these two giants makes other brands accept behind. Even these two brands also share each other with other prominent names in the industry such as Reebok, Converse or Jordan Brand. Growth is like that, but in terms of each sport or shoe segment, these two names also occupy the top of a few sections. In terms of basketball, Jordan Brand has always been the eternal follower, followed by the remarkable development of Under Armor. In football, Nike and adidas still occupy the top spot, followed by the pursuit of PUMA. However, at the array retro runner and running, cNike and adidas are both under great pressure from their Japanese rival – Asics.

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Founded in 1949 in Kobe by a veteran named Kihachiro Onitsuka, Asics was originally known as the Onitsuka Tiger. Initially, the brand focused only on basketball and volleyball shoes, exclusively for the domestic market.
In 1953, Marathon Tabi was born, marking a transformation of the brand, and creating a solid foundation for the future Asics’ money. In 1966, one of the most iconic sneakers of the sneakers industry was born, first placed on the Mexican 66 version. Thuong Dinh or the Warrior that any Vietnamese know.

Come back a little. In 1963, Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman founded Blue Ribbon Sports – the predecessor of Nike. Realizing the potential of Onitsuka Tiger, Blue Ribbon Sports officially became the distributor of this Japanese brand in the US, greatly contributing to the early development of Onitsuka Tiger. Blue Ribbon Sports took the brand far beyond the Japanese market, and created one of Nike’s own heavyweights.

In 1971, the relationship between Blue Ribbon Sports and Onitsuka Tiger officially broke down when Blue Ribbon Sports launched their own product line and changed its name to Nike that same year. Six years later, Asics was born, followed by a series of successes that even the Japanese did not think about.

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In 1977, Onitsuka Tiger together with two companies, GTO and JELENK, together formed Asics Corporation, which means in Latin meaning “a lucid spirit inside a healthy body”. After the merger took place, Onitsuka Tiger officially became a product line under the “umbrella” named Asics, specializing in fashionable vintage shoes. The shoe was released in 1966, the Mexico 66, which is still produced today.

Not only about jogging, Asics also serves other sports such as athletics, tennis, badminton, … .. Depending on each market, each country, Asics will have different strategies. However, the Asics line of running products has been the brand’s trump card for many years.

Although it started with basketball and volleyball, Asics has always been known and achieved a lot of success thanks to their running products. In 2013, the Running USA page released a list of the best-selling running shoes brands in the US, and Asics took the first place with a rate of 21.8%, followed closely by the American brand Brooks. with 21.6%. Giant Nike that year only finished third. According to Running USA, the statistics are based on the number of shoes purchased by authentic runners, who buy shoes for the sole purpose of running.

And it is this statistic that shows that Asics and Brooks are the experts in the market for running shoes. Nike may sell more running shoes, but in terms of the owner’s intended use it is completely different.

In 1986, Asics introduced GEL technology, and this technology is the most formidable rival of Air technology. Even, Phil Knight must give praise of as wary of GEL technology as the guy “David” from Japan. Since the birth of GEL, the game of sneakers has officially changed, and GEL has become the main technology in Asics’s shoe line. And according to experts, the Asics GEL technology is even better and quieter than the technology from Nike or adidas.
GEL is a soft material that is placed in the middle sole of the shoe. Created exclusively for running, GEL always does its best when used for the right purposes. When running, the GEL distributes the feedback force in different directions to avoid damage to the runner’s heels and knees. The technology is so good that when you drop an egg at a height of 6m onto the GEL plate, the egg doesn’t break. This operating principle of Asics is similar to Nike’s Air, but slightly better. And Asics himself confirmed this through a defamatory Nike ad in 1990.
The best-selling sneakers of Asics currently have the presence of GEL, such as the Asics Nimbus 16, GEL Kayano 21,… .. and the top is Asics GEL-Lyte III.

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Born in the early 90s, Asics GEL-Lyte III has always won the love of sneakerheads. With the idea of creating a running shoe combining performance as well as the most advanced technology at that time, Shigeyuki Mitsui launched GEL-Lyte III, contributing to bringing Asics’s name to the rest. Back of the World.

Today, the retro runner game is thriving, and Nike and adidas are growing themselves in this segment every day. However, Asics has always had a way to strengthen their position by continuously launching product lines such as GEL-Lyte IV, GEL-Lyte V or GEL-Mai. Besides, they also did not ignore the development of Asics GEL-Lyte III when continuously collaborating with famous names in the sneakers and fashion industry such as Ronnie Fieg, Concepts or Hanon. And if you want to have one of these versions in your hands, then you will have to spend a sizable amount of money on them.
In Vietnam, Asics seems to be unpopular with the masses due to the advancement of Nike and adidas, but in other countries Asics remains one of the top choices for difference seekers. .

For the most part, the attention nowadays is always on big brands with huge numbers of shoes released. Topped by Nike and Jordan with famous sneakers basketball versions along with Nike Sportswear shoes. Then we have adidas trailing behind with these hugely popular sneakers of the past few years like Yeezy Boost, Pharrell x NMD or UltraBoost. And the third place seems to be being contested by other brands. With Reebok seemingly slowing, PUMA is returning to the Thunder line, Asics is still there and growing sustainably. After collaborations with retailers like Titolo, KITH, atmos or mita recently, Asics has made fans excited to collaborate with one of the impressive designers during the time. more recently Kiko Kostadinov on the GEL-Burz 2 version. And even this version is very popular at fashion weeks.

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Why has Asics been able to grow so steadily? Why do they not need to use big names to promote like Ronaldo or Messi? The main reason is that Asics products themselves are extremely good and quality, so they do not have to overdo it and still sell products on a regular basis. And if the momentum continues, in a few years Asics will go from conqueror to dominator in this turbulent sneakers market.