![The Invention of the Iconic Vans Skateboarding Shoe | Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation The Invention of the Iconic Vans Skateboarding Shoe | Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation](https://invention.si.edu/sites/default/files/artifacts-vans-skateboard-shoes-caballero-jn2017-01432-s-750-inline-edit.jpg)
The Invention of the Iconic Vans Skateboarding Shoe | Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation
SoCalists - On March 16, 1966, in Anaheim, California, brothers Paul Van Doren and James Van Doren and Gordon C. Lee opened the first Vans store under the name The Van Doren
![The Invention of the Iconic Vans Skateboarding Shoe | Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation The Invention of the Iconic Vans Skateboarding Shoe | Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation](https://invention.si.edu/sites/default/files/artifacts-vans-skateboard-shoes-era-jn2017-01426-s-750-inline-edit.jpg)