Geox Shoes

An athletic shoe is a generic name for footwear designed for sporting and physical activities.

Athletic shoes, depending on the location and the actual type of footwear, may also be referred to as trainers (British English), sandshoes, gym boots or joggers (Australian English) running shoes, runners or gutties (Canadian English, Australian English, Hiberno-English), sneakers, tennis shoes (North American English, Australian English), gym shoes, tennies, sports shoes, sneaks, or takkies (South African English) and rubber shoes (Philippine English) canvers (Nigerian English).

Slip-ons, are low, lace-less shoes. The style most commonly seen, known as a loafer in American culture, has a moccasin construction. First appearing in the mid-1930s from Norway, they began as casual shoes, but have increased in popularity to point of being worn in America with city lounge suits, though these still require lace-up shoes in more conservative locations such as Britain. They are worn in many situations in a wide variety of colours and designs, often featuring tassels on the front, or metal decorations (the 'Gucci' loafer).

A less casual, earlier type of slip-on is made with side gussets (sometimes called a dress loafer). Made in the same shape as lace-up Oxfords, only lacking the laces, elasticated inserts on the side allow the shoe to easily removed, but remain snug when worn. This cut is unusual and has its greatest popularity in Britain.

Mule (a French word) is a style of shoe that is backless and often closed-toed. They can be any heel height from flat to high. The style is predominantly worn by women, but not exclusively.

The term derives from the Ancient Roman mulleus calceus a red or purple shoe worn by the three highest magistrates, although there is little indication of any structural resemblance.

High-heeled mules were a popular indoor shoe style of the 18th century, influenced by the patten, a backless overshoe of the 16th century. By the early twentieth century, mules were often associated with prostitutes.

In the early 1950s, Marilyn Monroe popularized the shoe, and helped to break its poor reputation.

Mules experienced some popularity in the 1950s and early '60s, and were seen in 1970s almost exclusively in the form of open-back Scandinavian clogs, but then re-emerged in the early 1990s, especially in its open-toed form (the "slide"), and began to dominate the shoe market for women.

The term pump for shoes is of unknown derivation according to the Websters Third New International Dictionary. The reference can be to different types of shoe depending on the person using the word and the speakers dialect:

*A type of athletic shoe:

**In Britain it is one of many regional names for plimsoll shoesSchool Pumps, an on-line retailer. Accessed 6 July 2009. and as such was one of the ambiguous items requested in the Two Ronnies' sketch "Four Candles".

**Athletic shoe equipped with inflatable air bladders are known as a pump sneaker, often shortened to pump.

*Shoes worn by dancers are called pumps. This is particularly true of Highland dancers.

*In North America, pumps (court shoes in British English) are heeled shoes with low cut fronts and usually no fastening, but can also be formal shoes for both genders. The type of women's shoe referred to as a pump is somewhat similar in overall shape to the handles of old-fashioned manual well pumps, possibly accounting for the name.

Geox is an Italian brand of shoe and apparel manufactured utilising waterproof/breathable fabrics.