Kashi Kicks Makes New Sneaker Inspired by Liberace, the King of Bling

On Aug. 12, new and unique shoe manufacturer Kashi Kicks announced in a press release that August 2007 will see the company's latest design, the Liberace Collection. The new design is said to have been inspired by Liberace's extravagant lifestyle, after company owners visited the Liberace Museum's "Outside the Show Box" exhibit. This is according to an April press release announcing that Kashi Kicks had partnered with the Liberace Foundation to create the new addition to their already unique AK Collection of sneakers.

The Kashi Kicks shoe company is known for its unique, extremely decorative and eye-catching sneakers, manufactured with lots of bling and the hip-hop culture and luxury market in mind.

Alan Kashi designs for Kashi Kicks and has both a background in jewelry design and a direct connection with the hip-hop culture, known for its dazzling, detailed and sparkling sneakers. Those known to wear the bling of footwear are Slim of 112, Cool from Cool & Dre, Flava Flav, George Clinton, Dj Unk, and Casey Hampton of the Pittsburgh Steelers. According to Alan Kashi, with the release of the Liberace Collection, "Liberace's street credibility is bumped up a notch." For added flavor, this latest creation includes the first sneaker ever to have a removable jeweled cape.

Liberace was probably the single most extravagant and flamboyant entertainer of the 20th century. He was blessed with many talents and will always be remembered for his extravagant, glittering costumes, his beautiful and brilliant classical piano concerts and his sense of humor. He is said to have earned more money that every other piano performer of his generation. He was a star of both stage and screen and had higher TV ratings than even "I Love Lucy."

Kashi Kicks' VP of Marketing added, "My grandmother loved him and I grew up watching Liberace on television. He really was the original King of Bling."

With the popularity of R&B, hip-hop and rap, sportswear and sneakers have gone from the gym to the high end footwear. As Kashi puts it: "Ostentatious to the extreme, garish in color and uninhibited in its lavishness, sportswear has become a status symbol for the new urban elite." That being the case, Liberace would be pleased.

The mission of the Liberace Foundation for the Performing Arts is to help talented students in the performing and creative arts pursue their careers by providing scholarships. Some of the proceeds from the partnership with Kashi Kicks will go to benefit the Liberace Foundation scholarship program. As of April 2007, the foundation had awarded more than $5 million to more than 2,200 students at more than 100 U.S. colleges and universities.

The Kashi Kicks' Liberace Collection will debut at the MAGIC Fashion Convention in Las Vegas, Aug. 27-30.

Source:

Press release, New Sneaker Manufacturer, Kashi Kicks, Inspired by Liberace's Flamboyant and Extravagant Lifestyle; http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/8/prweb546252.htm

Press release, Kashi Kicks Teams with Liberace!; http://www.liberace.org/liberace_pdf/press_250407.pdf