For Creeping Around
It’s fairly obvious how the word sneakers and brothel creepers got their name. The story about brothel creepers goes back to the second world war.
Troops posted to hot and desert climates like North Africa, were issued with desert boots. These were a revelation to the British and Commonwealth troops that wore the same heavy nailed boots in all climates
In the brothels of Naples and other southern Italian Cities, the British soldier couldn’t hide the sound of their boots clunking down corridors. The American boots gave away nothing but a slight squeak.
More than one hundred years ago when the plimsole was popular mainly with sportsmen, their rubber soles equally attracted the sneaker label to reflect the quietness of their approach.
They continued in popularity mainly because of the Americans’ love of basketball. The sneaker became a basketball boot and the sneaker came closer to the same design.
It took two German brothers to independently from each other, set up two manufacturing companies each with a different household name still very much in existence today.
Between them, they more or less kicked off the European sneaker movement.
Today sneakers, or trainers as the British are more likely to call them, are manufactured by hundreds of different companies around the world.
Manufacturers like Rieker sneakers have become the most popular form of footwear amongst the seven billion people on the planet.
Anyone not owning a pair or two is in the minority. And you don’t just see them worn by the younger generation. In recent years various manufacturers have developed sneakers to incorporate extreme comfort soles.
These may have memory soles with pockets of air that are highly recommended by doctors for people suffering diabetes.
Foot damage is extremely dangerous for diabetics with poor blood circulation and lack of full feeling in their feet.
Sneakers are predominately made with canvas uppers. This means they can be printed in all sorts of colourful patterns. It also means that despite the fact that such huge numbers of people are wearing them, we’re unlikely to bump into anyone on the high street wearing the same as ours.
