New Balance 2002

The New Balance 2002

The New Balance 2002, designed by Andrew Nyssen and first released in 2010, is the successor to the New Balance 2001, a very impressive model. The NB2002 was made in the New Balance factories in the United States. The materials of this sneaker were a composition of nubuck, mesh and N-ERGY soles which was borrowed from the 1906 runner.

The retail price of the model became more expensive as the quality of the 2002 improved. After selling for 30 years, the price of the running shoes, which retailed for $100, rose to $250.

The New Balance 2002 entered the market at the height of the 'Dad Shoe' trend, and became popular for its chunky design.

Ten years later in 2020, after the original New Balance 2002 was released, the model returned with a new design. The creative director of New Balance's Japanese division, Tetsuya Shono, replaced the original sole with the N-ERGY sole, which consists entirely of gel. This provides responsive shock absorption and elastic return in the heel, and in addition, the impact is more distributed across the sole.

Although initially loved by a small group, the New Balance 2002r has since attracted a large audience, namely through the release of the the 'Protection Pack'. This pack was relaunched in 2021 and consisted of three colorways: 'Rain Cloud', 'Phantom' and 'Sea Salt'.

During the release of all kinds of different colorways came some awesome collaborations, including with Salehe Bembury, J. Crew and streetwear brand BAPE. Two notable sneakers that emerged from the collaboration with BAPE were the New Balance 2002R BAPE 'Black' and New Balance 2002R BAPE 'Grey'.