{"product_id":"b08qds1pdd","title":"Authentic: A Memoir by the Founder of Vans","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn the tradition of best sellers such as  Shoedog ,  Authentic  is a surprisingly candid, compelling memoir by a high school dropout who went on to establish one of the world's most iconic brands\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003ePaul Van Doren is the founder of Vans - the shoe company beloved by skateboarders, creatives, and fans everywhere for its laid-back, colorful SoCal vibe, and famous for its people-oriented company culture. How did Van Doren, who started as a 16-year-old service boy at a local rubber factory, establish a family shoe business that evolved into a globally recognized brand with annual revenue of more than four billion dollars?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA blue-collar kid with no higher education and zero retail experience, Van Doren leveraged a knack for numbers, a genius for efficiency, and the know-how to make a great canvas tennis shoe into an all-American success story. In 1966, when the first House of Vans store opened, there were no stand-alone retail stores just for sneakers. Paul's bold experiments in product design, distribution, and marketing (Why not sell custom shoes? Single shoes?), aided by legions of fans - skateboarders, surfers, even Sean Penn wearing Vans' famous checkerboard slip on shoe in the film  Fast Times at Ridgemont High  - made Vans a household name.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBut there was also back-breaking work, a shocking bankruptcy, family turmoil, and a profound shift in how customers think about athletic shoes.  Authentic  details Van Doren's personal life, but also hard-won business lessons learned over six turbulent decades in the shoe trade: the importance of deep-rooted values, of improvisation, of vision (and revision), and above all, of valuing people over profits. Refreshingly forthright and totally entertaining,  Authentic  is a business memoir by an American original.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"ANT","offers":[{"title":"Ebook","offer_id":52797385244888,"sku":"YSL26447","price":8.54,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0835\/3356\/2072\/files\/812Oix8n8DL._SY1500.jpg?v=1792836030","url":"https:\/\/www.bookmebay.com\/products\/b08qds1pdd","provider":"BookMebay","version":"1.0","type":"link"}