The latest and greatest drop from New Balance is a 4-way collab on the MT580 model with MASTERPIECE SOUND, Hombre Niño, and mita sneakers, three powerhouses of streetwear in Japan. The MT580 was born in 1996 as an off-road running shoe, but was enthusiastically supported by the Tokyo street scene in the 2000s, and is unique among New Balance models.
The collaboration started as an offer from New Balance, with a request to “return to the basics”, in order to reintroduce the MT580 to the younger generation. The collaborators agreed that focusing only on appearances and looking to the past would be boring. While discussing the concept for this sneaker, they decided ‘military’ should be the core theme.
As such, they took inspiration from the New Balance 950 V2, a military-specific shoe unreleased to the public, even in the United States. Like the 950 V2, the MT580 outsole uses Vibram®. The upper uses the seamless Fantom Fit, improving the fit and feel. Using a new mould and incorporating GORE-TEX® and ToeProtect™, it not only looks great, but also has significantly improved functionality. The final product is a new MT580, not one that people are used to seeing.
Releasing in Japan on Saturday, 7th of October 2023 and will be available from:
– mita sneakers (instore and online)
– A-1 CLOTHING (online)
– Hombre Niño (instore and online)
– DSM GINZA (online)
– New Balance (in-store and online)
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