What Does Asics Have to Do With Octopus Salad?
What does ASICS have to do with octopus salad?
In the world of sports, the search for technological innovation is a constant. Footwear companies challenge themselves every day to improve the comfort, stability and performance of athletes.
However… who would have thought that one of the revolutions in sports shoe design could originate from a simple plate of octopus salad?
This is the story of Kihachiro Onitsuka , founder of ASICS, and how a seemingly banal observation led to a revolutionary idea that still influences the world of sneakers today.
An ex-military man with a mission
The year was 1949 , Japan had just emerged from World War II and the country was in full reconstruction. Kihachiro Onitsuka, a former soldier, decided to dedicate himself to something completely new, he wanted to help young Japanese find motivation and discipline through sports.
With this vision he founded Onitsuka Co. , an athletic footwear company that aimed to create the best shoes for athletes. Initial attempts at production did not yield the desired results. Onitsuka knew that to create a truly innovative product, an idea outside the box was needed.
The turning point came during a dinner. As Onitsuka looked at his plate of octopus salad , he noticed a curious detail: the mollusk's tentacles were firmly attached to the plate, creating an incredible grip.
It was at that moment that he had the intuition: if the soles of the shoes could replicate the same effect as the octopus's suction cups, they would guarantee unprecedented grip on the playing field .
That concept was quickly applied to a new line of basketball shoes, a sector in which Onitsuka wanted to establish itself. The shoes, equipped with a sole inspired by the structure of an octopus’s suction cups, offered a superior grip and allowed athletes to move with greater stability and confidence. The result was surprising: the athletes who tested them immediately noticed an improvement in their performance.
From Onitsuka Co. to ASICS
That was just the first step towards a company that would make history. Over the years, Onitsuka Co. continued to innovate and expand in the athletic footwear market. In 1977, the company merged with two other companies, GTO Co. and JELENK Co. , officially becoming ASICS , an acronym for “Anima Sana In Corpore Sano,” a motto that reflects the importance of balancing the mind and body through sports.
Today, ASICS is one of the leading brands in the sneaker industry, famous for models such as the GEL-KAYANO , an icon of running and streetwear. The design of its soles has evolved over time, but the philosophy behind the search for maximum performance and comfort has remained the same, exactly like the one Onitsuka had imagined in front of that plate of octopus salad.