ASICS is Japan’s largest manufacturer of athletic shoes, apparel and sports equipment. Founded and still based in Kobe, ASICS began shortly after WWII when Kihachiro Onitsuka launched an athletic footwear company with the aim of inspiring Japanese youth to be more physically active. In 1977, he changed the name of his company to an acronym representing the Latin phrase “anima sana in corpore sano,” which translates to “a sound mind in a sound body.”
ASICS signature shoe, the Onitsuka Tiger, was also the company’s first product, released in 1949. The success of the Tiger prompted a young Phil Knight (Co-Founder of Nike) to start his own athletic shoe company so he could distribute the Onitsuka Tiger in the US. Today, ASICS makes 437 different styles of athletic shoes for men and women.
