Sad news reached us today: Legendary skateboard footwear brand éS has been put on hiatus. Team manager Scuba Steve and rider Rick McCrank shared the news via Instagram. Sole Tech owner Pierre André Senizergues talks about the decision on industry website Shop-Eat-Surf.
“It’s a very complex market right now - there are a lot of brands, and a lot of pressure on the market,” Pierre said. “We feel it's the time to simplify things.”
He also talks about éS taking a "creative retreat", hinting towards a comeback at some point. Out of the three current Sole Tech footwear brands éS used to be marketed as the more technical and innovating brands, something that worked very well for them before the current era of simple vulcanised shoes.
éS has been around since 1995 and has given us a lot of legendary skateshoes. The Accel, Square's, the Sal 23 and SLB, all the Koston's and various pro shoes for riders like Tom Penny, Chad Muska, Ronnie Creager and Rick McCrank. The company's Menikmati video is, even to this day, a highly respected film.
éS will continue to be in stores until Spring 2012, after that it's done. It's sad to see such an iconic brand go and we hope someday there will be a proper comeback. In the meantime, take a trip down memory lane on éS' fifteenth anniversary website, featuring all the brand's history up to 2010.
