Aimé Leon Dore Partners With New Balance For Exclusive Line Of Retro-Style Runners
The first original New Balance shoe from the New York-based style brand.

It seems vintage-style sneakers are having a moment (peep the kicks of the best-dressed person you know), and that means there’s no better time for Queens-based modern fashion upstart Aimé Leon Dore to get in on the fun with a fresh trio of kicks dubbed the Aimé Leon Dore x New Balance RC56.

The throwback sneakers take their cues from both early 2000s-style runners as well as the performance DNA (and style, of course) of New Balance’s cross country running sneakers. The overall effect is very “Aimé Leon Dore,” especially a green-and-yellow iteration, one of three colorways drawing on signature moves from the taste-making New York City brand.

Mulberry Green in particular is a favorite of the 11-year-old brand, which also put the color scheme to eye-catching use in a custom, one-of-one Porsche released last year. The flagship color combo is joined by a white-meets-green Pristine offering and a fresh, sleek Navy colorway.

It’s been a busy sneaker season already for New Balance, which just worked with KITH and Ronnie Fieg on sneakers commemorating the reopening of the KITH Manhattan flagship. The RC56 notably represents the first original New Balance sneaker produced by the pioneering brand. The company’s NYC heritage is bold and distinct, with founder Teddy Santis prioritizing “a strong focus on simple yet powerful design,” the company said.

New Balance has also teamed with New York City designer Todd Snyder on a run of iconic sneaker collaborations, and the New Balance RC56 welcomes influence from Aimé Leon Dore’s tailored streetwear-plus-sportswear sensibility.

Hypebeast reports that the sneakers are bolstered by a PU foam footbed insert and FuelCell midsole cushioning, while the runners get their good looks from a blend of nylon mono mesh and perforated leather detailing.

Co-branding adorns both the tongue and the interior back heel, along with the exterior heel guard. Each pair is priced accessibly at $160, but there’s a catch: Sneakerheads, New Balance collectors and fans of the Big Apple’s ALD (the brand’s shorthand) will need to enter a drawing to slide into a pair.
That drawing, exclusively through Aimé Leon Dore, closes at day's end on May 21st, and the collection gets a wide release on May 23rd. With fresh looks and a covetable collaboration at the intersection of fashion and function, it appears that any of the three new Aimé Leon Dore x New Balance RC56 sneakers are a wise move for street-savvy seasonal style.