Massachusetts: 2 Boston-Based Sneaker Brands Rank Among The 7 Best
Boston is also home to many sneaker brands, and recently, Boardroom ranked two of them within on their list of the top 10 sneaker companies in the world.
To further emphasize the love of shoes in Massachusetts NBC Boston debuted a mini-series on this topic. It was released earlier this fall. Sneaker City: From The Ground Up explores the sneaker culture in Boston and throughout the state of Massachusetts. The episodes (which air on Tuesdays) examine various topics. These include visiting certain headquarters and interviewing stylists who help Boston professional athletes with their looks. For example, networks capturing players walk into the stadium for gameday has become quite a popular segment. When you see the Celtics players like Jaylon Brown slowly strutting into the locker room, looking super-snazzy, there’s a good chance he had the help of professional stylist.
Sneaker City
New Balance, Reebok, Converse, and Puma all have their U.S. headquarters in the greater Boston area. In addition, shoe brands like Crocs, HEY DUDE, Clark’s, Asics, NOBULL, and Rockport also call the Bay State their home. In fact, NOBULL is moving into a state-of-the-art headquarters in the city and was started by Reebok alumni.
Furthermore, this past September, the DCU Center in Worcester held the 10th anniversary of Got Sole, the biggest sneaker convention in the area.
So Where Do They Rank?
Nike and Jordan Brand still have a firm grip on the top spot, according to Boardroom. Their list includes lifestyle and casual shoe brands, however. Converse and New Balance then appear on the list; those two brands have tied for seventh place.
Earlier this year, GQ profiled the best shoe brands in the country. They also had high praise for Boston sneaker brands, naming Puma and Reebok as underdogs. Here, they label Puma as a “powerhouse” within the industry.
New Balance's Artist Roster Includes Jack Harlow
It used to be that when you heard of an artist “signed” to a brand name that was typically a record label. Today, it’s not uncommon for such acts to be part of a major non-music brand. In fact, over the past few years, artists have been signed to New Balance and will often rock their footwear on stage.
The footwear company has put a lot of effort — and money — into changing their image. In 2011’s Crazy, Stupid, Love Ryan Gosling’s Jacob Palmer famously dunked on Steve Carell’s Cal Weaver for wearing New Balances. “In that case, you got no right to wear New Balance sneakers, ever,” Jacob tells Cal, who was praising his 407’s while Jacob was trying to give him a lesson on style, and what not to wear.
New Balance has made a massive comeback, however. Much of this has to do with their retro and vintage approach. Sneaker lines like their 574 model have been the poster shoe for those who are completely embracing this vintage styling. You may even see striped tube socks in tandem with the 574’s.
Collabs
Complex Magazine detailed how New Balance was moving past their “dad” brand image. In their story, they highlight the company’s approach to being open to collaborations and allowing them to be innovative paths into new demographics. “Media impressions for its collabs increased around 200 percent from early 2021 to early 2022,” Complex explained.
In a recent feature by AOIbot that details the favorite sneaker of every state in the country, New Balance was all over the map. In fact, the NB 550 was Massachusetts’ favorite shoe.
Boston + Sports
With New Balance’s headquarters located in the Boston area, the brand has made a strong effort to have a visible local presence. Former Red Sox players like Dustin Pedrioa (who was a fan favorite) started wearing New Balance cleats. Now, they have partnered with the most popular player in the game in Shohei Ohtani. They announced the long-term deal back in January. Ohtani is not only one of the most popular players in MLB, but in the entire sport, globally.
New Balance has also had a firm grip on Lacrosse. They’ve designed and delivered on the most common brand of Lax cleats. Premier Lacrosse League All-Stars like Trevor Baptiste often collaborate with New Balance as well.
Narrowing in on the entertainment world though, you will find a number of artists sporting New Balance lines on stage. With touring being the primary avenue for artists to maximize their income, many are finding creative ways to to enhance their personal brands by using their platform to showcase others they have teamed with. In addition, comfort and support are important to artists who need to take the stage every night.
Here, we will take a further look at present-day artists who are signed to New Balance.
Jeff Gorra is a Boston-based writer who has been with Beasley Media Group since the beginning of 2023. He writes about restaurants and food, as well as sports and rock music. His experience also includes show hosting and in-depth creative writing in rock and reggae dub music. Jeff’s an avid surfer, New York Giants, and Pearl Jam fan, however, if you make unforgettable pizza, he is sure to find you.
