It was June of 2018, and Siva Narendra and Josh DeTar were preparing their presentation for American Banker’s Digital Banking conference to be held in Austin, Texas.

Narendra, Tyfone’s CEO, had not attended the event as frequently as DeTar, so he asked his EVP of Evangelism what he could expect to see at the conference.

“There will be a lot of sales people who look alike and dress alike up there,” DeTar said.

The event marked the first time ever that Tyfone, a digital banking provider, had secured a large sponsorship at a major industry event.

Narendra and DeTar knew they had only seven-minutes on stage to do a demo (on intelligent banking) and hopefully make a lasting impression on the bankers in the crowd.

DeTar was confident but realistic.

“Nobody is going to remember what we said,” he told Narendra.

Still, the two men needed to find a way to stand out from the competition in a crowded digital banking field. As they pondered their options, inspiration struck.

Well, it actually struck DeTar’s wife.

Erica DeTar, who worked at Nike, suggested the Tyfoneers take the stage wearing bright red Air Jordans beneath their Tyfone shirts. The DeTars already had a tradition of photographing their family’s footwear through different stages of life and at different events, so the idea of focusing on shoes was a no-brainer.

Did it work?

“It was a huge hit,” Narendra said. “Red Jordans were like walking around wearing a highlighter. It really changed the perception – even from our competitors – of who we were.”

Narendra said he still has that original pair of shoes and pulls them out on special occasions.

As successful as the ploy was, Narendra and DeTar quickly realized that the design of the Air Jordans changed frequently, so Tyfone needed a red shoe whose look and design would remain constant if it were to become a staple of the team’s marketing efforts.

Enter the red Converse All-Stars.

Narendra said the red “Chucks” – so nicknamed because basketball star Chuck Taylor originally asked the company for a redesigned athletic shoe with more support and flexibility – were a good choice for Tyfone because they were easy to find and easy to customize. In fact, one of the Converse stores that offers quick customization is actually in Tyfone’s home of Portland, Oregon.

The shoes are now worn by all Tyfone employees any time they are on the road at an industry event or when meeting clients and potential clients.

So are they still drawing attention?

Narendra travels frequently – usually on Alaska Airlines – and said some of the carrier’s flight attendants immediately recognize the shoes when the Tyfoneers board.

On top of that, Narendra was stopped recently by a TSA agent who noticed that he didn’t have the bright red shoes on.

“She said ‘hey, aren’t you the guy who always wears the red shoes?’” he said.

The trip was personal in nature, so Narendra had chosen other footwear.

Today, bank and credit union executives welcoming the Tyfone crew into their offices to do product demos often ask how they can get their own pair of the iconic shoes. “We say ‘you get them when you go live with us,’” Narendra said.

But it goes much deeper than that, DeTar said.

“It’s a symbol of officially being in the family. It’s also about unity, about being grounded, about being humble,” he said.

They also remind the Tyfoneers of the importance of walking a mile in someone else’s shoes.

The matching “Chucks” have come to stand for so much more over the years, though. They represent a unified team — one that is aligned and committed to the mission of providing the best partnership, collaboration, and technology in digital banking and digital solutions for credit unions.

“Our willingness to all match in our red Chucks is an outward expression of that commitment and an expression of our desire to take what we do – and who we do it for – very seriously, all while having a little bit of fun together doing it,” DeTar said.

Indeed the hashtag #redshoecrew has become a national phenomenon! Well, at least in the digital banking space.

So could an envious competitor steal the idea?

Narendra said that used to be a concern but not anymore.

“If you want to copy us, go for it,” he said. “We’re never not going to be about the red Chucks.”