Everything that went down at Brooklyn "Vans ComfyCush High School" Event

The gentrification process has led, over the last few years, to the real explosion of the now more hype district of New York, Brooklyn. This is undoubtedly the most creative part of New York City, it is in an enormous growth and it is evident. As soon as you arrive it is impossible not to notice that Brooklyn is an open-air construction site in the most positive sense possible, everything moves, everything is constantly expanding, it is the New York universe that is running its course.

It is in this context that Vans has chosen to present its new technology, ComfyCush, applied to one of the most classic and iconic silhouettes of the brand founded by the Van Doren brothers in 1964 in California, the Era. it's the consequence of the comparison and the exchange of ideas between Vans and two skate legends like Tony Alva and Stacy Peralta, launched in 1977 to meet the requests of more performance and functional shoe for skating. Almost 50 years later Vans, continuing to interact with consumers and creative communities, launched ComfyCush Era and did so with an event that blended past and present, tradition and innovation, the "Vans ComfyCush High School Event".

"The ComfyCush Era exemplifies how Vans is adapting to the evolving needs of our consumers"

These are the words of Nathanial Iott, senior director of footwear design at Vans, while Matthew Pino, Global Product Merchandising Manager, focuses on the perfect symbiosis between classicism and innovation:

"Often the opportunity to design something new, leads to dramatic updates, but the best thing about the ComfyCush Era is that it is truly a classic. That is not only important to our loyalists but gives us the chance to showcase our design innovations to newcomers."

Vans took us to school. A disused factory transformed for the occasion into a real High School: classrooms, laboratories, locker rooms, teachers and students.
It would have been unthinkable to start without the proper dress code, specifically, the new Vans ComfyCush Era.

So we crossed the hall to reach the classroom where the chair was headed by an exceptional teacher: Tony Alva, one of the founding fathers of contemporary skateboarding and a member of the original Z-Boys, a group of young surfers and then skaters who, to escape the everyday life of their complicated family situations, they took refuge in the Zephyr surf shop. Founded and managed by Jeff Ho, Skip Engblom, and Craig Stecyk, they teamed up the team of the most talented surfers in Dogtown (west of Los Angeles between Santa Monica and the Pacific Ocean Park).
Professor Alva could only start from the beginning: everything stems from the "frustration" of being able to train only a few a day since the only rideable waves are those in the early morning and to make the most of it was necessary to find a good training method. The boys thought to exploit the skate, now fallen into disuse since the mid-60s and no longer marketed, building its own by assembling wooden planks and wheels of skates. The aggressive approach combined with the rapidity of the movements and the endless hours spent on the table, put a strain on the tightness of the shoes so as to force the young Tony to have to change almost a couple a day. Since then, Vans' innovation has never stopped coming to 2019 with the launch of the new ComfyCush technology developed on the iconic Era silhouette.

From the history classroom we move to the science lab where, between the microcaps, a periodic table, and a skeleton, we enter into the most technologically-oriented aspects. In fact, Vans has reconfigured the classic Era by implementing its comfort with foam and rubber printed together that guarantee more resistance and freedom of movement. New anti-humidity materials and an innovative upper give the Vans ComfyCush Era unprecedented comfort.

After so much study, concentration and commitment come the most desired moment by us students and not only, the recess: Hot-dogs, pizza, french fries, drinks, alcoholic or not.
As in any self-respecting high school cannot miss the performance of the school band with lots of dancers, drums and wind instruments to be the forerunners to the most anticipated guest of the evening. The rapper Lil Wayne with his amazing live made students and professors dance by cherry on top to an event already in itself to be framed. 

At the end comes the sound of the bell that states the end of the lessons and also the fun. It was a magnificent experience that once again stresses the importance of continuous research and constant innovation, never forgetting how essentiall it is to never forget its origins and legacy that in more than 50 years of history, Vans has knew how to build himself.