Converse Qixi: Key takeaways
- Converse turned the difficulty of removing its high-tops into a playful reason for couples to stay together
- The brand expanded a viral Douyin joke into a Qixi campaign and product catalogue on Rednote
- The idea reverses a Chinese superstition that gifting shoes encourages a partner to walk away
Converse (匡威) has turned one of its shoes’ most annoying features into a reason for couples to stay together. The joke began with a video from Douyin (抖音) creator Chen Xiao’en (陈肖恩). After an argument, someone attempts to storm out of the house, only to spend so long loosening and retying their Converse high-tops that the anger dissipates.
Chen called them ‘Boots of Tranquillity’
Chen called them ‘Boots of Tranquillity’, referencing a cooldown-reducing item in mobile game Honor of Kings. A viewer added the line that took the idea viral: ‘Converse high-tops are the ultimate way to stop someone walking out.’
Converse soon joined in, asking whether the couple had reconciled and offered them two pairs of shoes before bringing the joke to Rednote where the brand classified four styles by their power to delay a departure. Mules provide gentle persuasion, low-tops create a brief delay, high-tops deliver extreme persuasion and Chuck Taylor All Star XXHIs amount to forced detention.
The brand classified four shoe styles by their power to delay a departure
The timing with Chinese Valentine’s Day gave Converse an opportunity to tie the user-generated gag into its Qixi marketing. It launched an interactive topic around Converse’s love language being ‘please stay’ and offered two pairs to participating users.
The Dao view: Turning friction into affection
This was teed right up for converse. The joke is basically a product catalogue. But it also works as a reversal of Chinese gift giving superstition. Giving a romantic partner shoes is considered taboo in Chinese culture. It can imply helping them walk away. Not the case when they’ve got a pair of Converse to contend with.
