The Acorn Story
It started with a man in Maine who loved to make his friends comfortable. So one day in 1976, he went down to his workshop and hand-stitched something special. Something that was part slipper, part sock, and all comfort. Just like that, the iconic Acorn slipper sock was born. Since then, we’ve made a lot more footwear for a lot more people, in all kinds of styles, for all sorts of uses. But no matter what we create, the reason why we create it will never change. We still do it to make our friends comfortable. Comfort is at the heart of what we do, and always has been. We want you to find long-lasting comfort in every stitch, every pattern, and every detail. Because at Acorn, this is our promise-for everything we make to feel wonderfully, totally, perfectly, comfortably you.
1973 – David Quinn stitches leather to the bottom of a wool sock for Christmas presents in Fayatte, Maine. The Slipper Sock is born.
1974 – Quinn starts making Slipper Sock prototypes at Falcon Shoe in Lewiston, Maine to show to companies such as L.L. Bean and Eddie Bauer. While there are other slipper socks in the market, his stands out because he sewed super comfy, now legendary, foam into the insole.
1976 – The first pairs are sold to Kittery Trading Post in Kittery, Maine. Acorn is now a true brand. Later that year, Quin opens Acorn’s official offices and production in the Roy Continental Mill in Lewiston, Maine, joining 19 other shoe factories that kept the city alive.
1982 – Quinn is watching coverage of a NASA space shuttle mission and is shocked to see astronauts wearing his Slipper Socks! Since then, Slipper Socks have become standard issue for astronauts on their space missions. Acorn is catapulted into national spotlight.
1992 – Acorn is the first to introduce custom fleece print designs and starts a colorful trend with the fleece sock business.
2000 – Acorn introduces the first indoor/outdoor slippers.
2004 – Acorn introduces its own line of shoes for aprés sport and causal weekend wear.
2012 – Acorn repurposes another old mill space into beautiful creative offices in the Fort Andross Mill in Brunswick, Maine.
2013 – Design house Nicholas K features the Slipper Sock on the runway during the 2013 Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in New York City.
After 37 years with Acorn, David Quinn retires. Acorn continues to retain his ethos of quality, craft, and comfort.