First Look at Teddy Santis' New Balance Collection
● The founder of Aimé Leon Dore was named creative director of the active brand's Made in USA line last year.
New Balance is offering the first glimpse of the new Teddy Santis-designed collection that will drop on Friday.
Last April, Santis, founder and creative director of New York-based Aimé Leon Dore, was named by the Boston-based sports brand as the creative director of its Made in USA brand, New Balance's designation for product that has a domestic value of 70 percent or more.
This year also marks the 40th anniversary of the brand's 990 sneaker, so Santis designed seasonal limited-edition models of the 990v1, 990v2 and 990v3, which will be launching in April, with new introductions scheduled for each month.
In addition to the footwear, the collection will feature classic American sportswear including sweatshirts, sweatpants, shorts, long- and short-sleeve T-shirts.
The designs are intended to spotlight New Balance's history, heritage and craftsmanship through the use of products, materials and color, the company said.
Santis segmented the first drop into three categories: Elevated Legacy, which uses the brand's classic colors in updated versions; Uniform Staple to designate everyday wardrobe essentials, and Quickstrike, which offers more innovative colors and materials for use in key models.
“As a brand, New Balance has always been drawn to nontraditional and independent creators, which is what makes Teddy such a perfect fit for New Balance Made in the USA,” said Chris Davis, chief marketing officer and senior vice president of merchandising at New Balance. “Not only does he have an incredibly authentic and passionate tie to New Balance, but he's uniquely positioned to help preserve the history of Made, which is the foundation of the brand, while simultaneously guiding its evolution through his unique design sensibility.”
The collaboration with Santis is a first for New Balance and is intended to elevate the Made in USA brand globally by tapping into Santis' “influence” for its product design and marketing, the athletic brand said at the time of his appointment. It added that Santis “has firmly established himself as a leading figure in today's contemporary fashion and lifestyle landscape,” and proven his ability to channel “the spirit and history of New York City into Aimé Leon Dore's products, experiences and campaigns.”
Neither Santis nor New Balance would comment further on the collection launch.
The collection will be available on newbalance.com and at select global retailers and will retail for $65 and up for the apparel and $199.99 for the footwear.
Santis was born in Queens, N.Y., to parents who immigrated from Greece. He founded Aimé Leon Dore in New York in 2014 and has worked with New Balance in the past to reimagine a number of styles including the 550, the 1300, the 990, the 997 and the 827.
New Balance has manufactured products in the U.S. for more than 75 years. It owns and operates five factories in New England and one in Flimby, U.K., and in 2021 had sales of $4.4 billion globally.