Source: NEW BALANCE HOOPS UNVEILS COLLABORATION WITH CEO AND AGENT RICH PAUL
It’s taking everything in me from saying, ‘Adele’s boyfriend is dropping a dope ass collab with New Balance…’ There, I said it, lol. Seriously, the New Balance and Rich Paul collab is, in my opinion, not just a nod to sneaker culture. It’s a collection for the untapped sneaker enthusiast long overlooked by brands. I’ve stated on multiple occasions that sneaker culture is aging up. Unfortunately, the footwear and apparel aren’t following suit. The clothing drops from various brands featuring graphic tees and colorful collabs, doesn’t really speak to me; although I cover drops and discuss the apparel, every brand tends to focus solely on youth culture.
This collection nails the demographic of postgraduate to professional men who simply aren’t rocking Jordans the way they used to. Which makes the Klutch Sports x New Balance drop extremely significant for two reasons:
- It validates a recent post where I said New Balance is building DTC via drops with third party platforms as opposed to with older brand accounts focused on fit and comfort.
- New Balance isn’t simply riding the wave of the 550 in being the best opposition to the Air Jordan 1 for sneakerheads. They are challenging the norm and aiming at demographics above that level.
Why is this significant? If the Rich Paul/Klutch Sports collection ends up sitting and not selling through quickly, it provides evidence that the aging up of sneaker culture isn’t as significant as I’ve thought and could prevent other brands from catering to this segment. Older comfort and fit accounts should hope that this collection doesn’t perform well. I think this collection would do well even without Rich Paul, but his connection doesn’t hurt. I’m giving this drop a considerable second look because of one of my favorite groups.
The subtle blue and cream color of the collection has a direct allusion to a classic Hip-Hop reference. While New Balance and Paul don’t say this in their discussion, I see the reference immediately and it resonates. The clothing is simple. It isn’t overstated, garish and ‘in your face’; it’s casual smoothness with a refined quality. The style crosses generations and immediately pulls me back to the Aime Leon Dore basketball video featuring Bobbito, Charles Oakley and Jason Williams. My generation feels seen and if we respond, it means New Balance doesn’t need another account to hit a demographic that may have originally shopped at a comfort and fit store. That’s a dangerous thing for specialty retail.
The collection, including the new 550 colorway and premium apparel will be available on www.newbalance.com and KLUTCHShop.com starting Friday, December 10th with suggested retail price ranging from $40 for the graphic tee to $140 for the 550.