These Blacked-Out New Balances Aren't as Basic as You Think
At first glance, the New Balance x BEAMS 1000 looks like your standard blacked-out NB. But BEAMS, the Japanese retail heavyweight with an uncanny knack for subtle details, doesn’t do basic.
One shoe comes wrapped in mesh and suede, the other features glossy patent leather and smooth overlays. It’s two different sneakers brought together to make one pair. Even the signature “N” logos are reversed: White on black and black on white.
Reflective rope laces and a hit of signature BEAMS orange on the insoles complete the look. The devil’s in the details, and BEAMS makes sure to deliver.
The New Balance x Beams 1000 is not begging for attention, but it does reward anyone who looks close enough. There’s something to be said about this quiet kind of cool, where details do the talking, in a sneaker landscape that’s more maximalist than ever. (But, I’ll let our editor in chief do the talking on that topic.)
On this sneaker, New Balance is continuing to flex its collaborative muscles by putting a lesser-known, recently revived silhouette in the hands of BEAMS, Japan’s collaboration-crazy crazy pioneering retailer. And the result is a sneaker that doesn’t scream for attention but earns it anyway.
