THE HISTORY OF THE PUMA CALIFORNIA
The story behind the California Style
The PUMA California was one the most beloved silhouettes in the 1980s as a sport-turned-classic. The PUMA California rose to fame on the courts but soon moved across cultures and became a streetstyle staple. The famed court OG’s low-key style with metallic and leather details, and a versatile chunky sole has rocked fashion trends for decades. There is much more behind the California than its timeless, classic design - the secret lies in the sole and in the way the shoe is made.
PUMA’s sport shoe catalogue from 1981 lists it as:
"Universal training shoe for indoor and outdoor use made of air-permeable net nylon material. Perforated forefoot part made out of nubuck. Flexible California-Technique."
"California actually refers to The California Technique, which is a specific way of making shoes. The whole shoe consists of only two parts, the upper part and the sole, which is splashed on to the upper part."
Helmut Fischer, Mr. PUMA
HOW WOMEN INVENTED THE CALIFORNIA TECHNIQUE IN THE 19TH CENTURY
The origins of the California style date back to the American Civil War. With the men at war, women from the west of the United States were unable to handle the heavy machinery and did not have the power that was necessary to put all the different parts of a shoe together. Therefore, they developed a style that could be accomplished with a simple quilting machine.
More than a hundred years later, slightly improved and ready for the big business, the style was adapted by the shoe industry. PUMA purchased a spraying machine to produce California styled shoes in series.
The California became a piece of sport shoe history. Aside from the fact it only consisted of two parts, the shoe was special because of its sole. It contained two degrees of hardness with the part that hits the ground first softer than the rest.
But that was not the only advantage. In their 1983 product catalogue, PUMA published an issue about the California, giving five good reasons why PUMA semms tremendous quality with the California.
“5 GOOD REASONS WHY PUMA SELLS TREMENDOUS QUALITY WITH THE CALIFORNIA”:
In 2018, PUMA launched a reimagined silhouette of the OG California to create the Cali. While this version of the California may not use the spraying machine from the 1980s anymore, its design is inspired from the 1981 silhouette. It was designed to play on the popular white court shoe trend while adding a younger, fresher aesthetic to the PUMA women's line.
Since it’s relaunch in 2018, the Cali style has again become extremely popular and available in a wide range of colours and has been developed into a range of styles like the Cali Wedge, Cali Sport, and Cali Star. This classic style will continue to be in the PUMA family, evolving to keep up with the latest trends of today.