Boston-based New Balance Athletics, Inc. and San Clemente-based Stance join forces for their first release in an ongoing series of collaborations in 2017. The first release will debut June 10th, entitled ‘First of All,’ includes two unique kits that each pay homage to the respective brand hometowns – Boston and San Clemente. Together, they tell the story of how two distinctly different companies, from opposite coasts, have come together to celebrate the art of the kit.
The Boston kit features the iconic New Balance 997 in copper rose and tan, and celebrates the city’s famed brownstone architecture. In addition to the color palette, a cobblestone patterned deboss is featured on the leather accents, while a teal reflective underlay represents the patina copper often found on the brownstones. The 997 is paired with a Stance 144 Needle crew silhouette in premium cotton that sports a classic, understated design to compliment the rich tradition of New Balance’s 997 shoe.
Boston-based artist Matthew Zaremba illustrated imagery for the kit’s social and retail marketing creative to convey Boston’s bright future and standing as one of America’s most historic cities.
To represent Stance, the newly introduced New Balance 1978 silhouette in slate blue and tan pig suede is paired with a Stance 144 Needle crew sock with athletic stripes to evoke the famed beaches and surf breaks of San Clemente where Stance came to life only seven years ago. The kit is as clean and easygoing as the place where Stance reimagined and reignited a category once left for dead.
Orange County-based artist, surfer and skater, Mark Oblow, showcases San Clemente through social and retail marketing illustrations that speak to the rare and beautiful lifestyle that’s lived in this California enclave.
While each company has a distinctly different history and lifestyle, both New Balance and Stance share pride for their hometown, a love of art, and a passion for quality craftsmanship. Touches such as sole inserts featuring an East Coast map graphic on the 997 and a West Coast graphic on the 1978, highlight each brand’s headquarter coordinates and emphasize the collaboration between the two brands. These coordinates are also found in the welt cuff of the socks. The shoes and socks are sold together with the socks housed in a special compartment inside the shoebox. All of the shoes and socks in the ‘First of All’ kits are Made in the USA.
“We wanted to collaborate with an innovative brand that has brought fresh perspective and quality design to the market, to demonstrate how the sock and shoe can truly work together,” said Chris Davis, Vice President of Global Marketing at New Balance. “It has been exciting to unite our two worlds in a way that highlights our shared values and brings authentic, premium products to our consumers.”
“This is our first major collaboration with a footwear brand and it’s been an honor for us to work with a company that we have such deep respect for,” said John Wilson, President of Stance. “To see our culture captured like this with a heritage American brand is a proud moment for Stance.”
The 997 and Stance sock kit representing Boston retails for $240 and is available at select sneaker retailers and at newbalance.com and stance.com.
The 1978 and Stance sock kit representing San Clemente retails for $180 and is available at select sneaker retailers and at newbalance.com and stance.com.
To stay up-to-date on the collaborations coming this year from New Balance and Stance, follow @newbalance and @stancesocks on Instagram, and/or @newbalance and @stance on Twitter and Facebook.
#NewBalancexStance, #The ArtoftheKit, #StanceAnthem
@newbalance @stancesocks (IG)
@newbalance @stance (FB & Twitter)
ABOUT NEW BALANCE
New Balance, headquartered in Boston, MA has the following mission: Demonstrating responsible leadership, we build global brands that athletes are proud to wear, associates are proud to create and communities are proud to host. New Balance is the only major company to make or assemble more than 4 million pairs of athletic footwear per year in the USA, which represents a limited portion of our US sales. Where the domestic value is at least 70%, we label our shoes Made in the USA. New Balance owns five factories in New England and one in Flimby, U.K. New Balance employs more than 6,000 associates around the globe, and in 2016 reported worldwide sales of $3.8 billion. To learn more about New Balance, please visit www.newbalance.com and for the latest press information please visit https://newbalance.newsmarket.com.
ABOUT STANCE
Embracing “The Uncommon Thread” as its mantra, Stance turned one of the world’s most boring accessories into its most exciting in just a few short years. Stance’s founders saw a category that had been ignored, taken for granted, looked over, and dismissed. By breathing life into something that had been overlooked, Stance ignited a movement of art and self-expression that has drawn athletes, performers and iconic cultural influencers to the brand – a group called the ‘Punks & Poets.’ And by underpinning its creative roots with a relentless focus on technical innovation, Stance is now found in over 60 countries and has been named the Official Sock of the NBA and of Major League Baseball, where it is worn by all players on-court and on-field in every game. To learn more about Stance, visit www.stance.com and follow along @stancesocks on Instagram and @stance on Twitter and Facebook.
