On Their 5th Anniversary, Aimé Leon Dore & New Balance Unleash a Flurry of Sneakers
New Balance and Aimé Leon Dore’s partnership is deeper than a collaboration.
This is a love story with a plot that's been thickening for half a decade. And if you think I'm being facetious, just ask Aimé Leon Dore.
Read out by none other than Ray Winstone, the legendary East Londoner featured in all good British gangster films, Aimé Leon Dore penned a love letter to the other half of its most famous sneaker collaborations.
“Partner, picking the right one, now that’s something special,” begins Winstone in his husky, instantly recognizable, cockney voice. “It’s one of life’s biggest decisions. Whether it’s love, sport, business, or family. Getting it right, well, now that’s hard to teach. Now, when it’s perfect, it’s something special.”
Clearly, ALD thinks it's picked the perfect partner in New Balance, and the results speak for themselves.
Most recently, on December 2, the draw opened for their New Balance 997 OG Mismatch collab — the same model that kicked off their collaboration in 2019 — dressed in khaki green with burgundy underlays and hits of navy blue and yellow.
It’s their second 997 OG in quick succession, another one released days previously on November 29, selling out instantly, and combines premium materials with a tasteful color palette and minimal hits of branding.
But who's surprised? This is what NB and ALD have been doing for five years. The only difference is now, the intensity has ramped up.
It’s only been a couple of weeks since the two teased a dark green-colored 993 to match Aimé Leon Dore and Porsche’s souped-up 993 Turbo. (Not to forget that a couple of weeks before was the release of their sportswear SONNY collection... it's getting hard to keep up.)
An upgraded classic car with an equally great-looking, limited-edition sneaker? Naturally, the faction of menswear fans obsessed with drinking ALD coffee and its grown-up strand of streetwear was weak at the knees.
At the end of 2024, to mark five years of their partnership, Aimé Leon Dore and New Balance are bringing out the big guns.
These three sneakers, unveiled in quick succession, along with a Ray Winstone cameo rapidly racking up big engagement numbers on Instagram, ensure they end the year with a bang.
New Balance and Aimé Leon Dore’s past collaborative output has demanded that we expect great things from the duo, but its current output is on another level.
