New Balance 237

New Balance 237

With the New Balance 237, Boston-based shoe brand New Balance continues its current trend of combining classic and modern sneaker designs to create a wholly unique shoe. 

The New Balance 237 is a modern reinterpretation of some of New Balance’s most iconic 1970s running shoes. The design of the 237 pays homage to a range of retro design inspirations to build a minimalist yet versatile and contemporary sneaker silhouette.

As the name suggests, the New Balance 237 is essentially a revamped version of the New Balance 327, incorporating some of the 327’s more famous design elements while adding new features that help the 237 differentiate itself from other New Balance sneakers

Source: Newbalance.com

The 327 Paves the Way for the 237

The design of the New Balance 237 can be viewed as a continuation of the New Balance 327

The New Balance 327 debuted in April 2020 for a retail price of 100 USD. Inspiration for the 327 comes from three vintage 1970s New Balance sneakers: The New Balance 320New Balance 355, and New Balance Supercomp. The idea behind the 327’s design was to take unique elements from each of these retro New Balance sneakers and create a modern-day lifestyle adaptation based on the brand’s running-shoe history.

The New Balance 327 was designed by footwear designer Charlotte Lee. The 327 features suede overlays over a lightweight nylon-based upper, an oversized N logo (only on the lateral side of the foot), and a studded rubber outsole that goes up the heel. 

When designing the 327, Lee looked at past New Balance sneakers to guide her. This is especially prevalent in the asymmetrical midsole, the fang-shape toe box, and the wrap-around, studded outsole. The oversized N logo pays tribute to the New Balance 320, which was the first shoe to use the now-iconic New Balance N. The studded outsole is a direct reference to the New Balance 355, which was initially designed in 1977 and used a studded outsole to provide runners with increased stability while running on trails. The lightweight nylon upper is similar to the upper on the Supercomp.

Here is what Lee had to say about using past New Balance sneaker designs to inform her work on the 327: 

“When I was looking through our archives, I was looking for things that were iconic and things that stood out to me as being different. Layering those elements together, created a shoe that felt relatively recognizable to the consumer, but at the same time it was a little bit like, ‘Oh, I’ve not seen that before.'”

With a wealth of iconic 1970s New Balance silhouettes to choose from, Lee had her work cut out when choosing design elements that were complementary and translated well to modern-day sneaker culture. 

However, since New Balance has a habit of keeping its classic footwear in production, Lee had to make sure the 327 was noticeably different from the models it took inspiration from. Although she wanted a retro, 1970s feel for the 327, she didn’t want to create another shoe that looked like it was from the 70s-she still wanted a shoe that looked modern and could withstand the needs of a modern lifestyle. 

The design choices for the 327 merge to create a lightweight and comfortable shoe with a stylish retro aesthetic.

New Balance 327 x Casablanca Collaboration

The New Balance 327 received a runway release by making its first appearance in Charaf Tajer’s Paris fashion label, Casablanca’s Fall/Winter presentation during Paris Fashion Week in 2020. 

For the New Balance 327 x Casablanca collaboration, Casablanca created two unique 327 colorways, using hints of Moroccan orange and vintage green tennis uniforms. Casablanca’s design team was inspired by 1970’s vintage Italian Cars, and they aimed for a retro tennis club style. Tajer added a perforated white upper for increased breathability and a sportier look. 

The New Balance 327 Casablanca Green colorway features a perforated white leather upper with a forest green suede overlays on the heel and toes. The studded rubber outsole is green, and the oversized N logo is white with a green outline. The 327 Casablanca Orange colorway comes equipped with a perforated white leather upper and orange suede overlays on the heel and toes. The studded rubber outsole is green, and the oversized N logo is orange with a green outline. 

Source: Stockx.com

New Balance 237 Design 

Following the success of the New Balance 327, the Boston-based shoe company continues its efforts to take retroelements from previous sneaker silhouettes and incorporate them with modern stylings by passing the baton over to the New Balance 237. 

The New Balance 237 signifies the evolving retro-modern footwear design by using elements from the 327 while also staying firmly rooted in New Balance’s storied running style. It’s a versatile sneaker with a high level of wearability that pays homage to what’s come before but belongs to the modern-day. 

The designer of the New Balance 237, Charlotte Lee, had this to say about the 237’s aesthetic: 

“The design of the 237 consists of details from retro running models in our archive and twists them creating a trend-forward aesthetic. The timeless design of the 237 has a prominent heritage 70’s design visual while still delivering a versatile model that can be worn with anything.” 

Like the 327’s incorporating design elements from prior 1970s New Balance running shoe silhouettes like the 320, Trail 355, and Super comp models, the 237 draws inspiration from the New Balance COMP 100 ultralight racer from the late 1970s, as well as the New Balance 420New Balance 1300, and New Balance Gator cleats. The rubber outsole design is taken from the original Comp 100. Still, when adapting the retroelements for modern usage, these components have been stretched, bulked up, and sculpted to meet the proportional needs to fit a contemporary footwear aesthetic.

The 237 upper is constructed from classic 1970s sneaker combinations of suede and nylon. Most of the 237’s colorways are vibrant, creating familiar color blockings and an easy-to-pair aesthetic.

Lee took some of the more popular elements from the 327 and worked them into the 237. The stitched oversized New Balance N logo comes straight off the 327, showing that while New Balance likes to pay tribute to the past, they’re not afraid to use the present. The 237 has oversized N logos on both the lateral and medial sides of the sneakers, marking a slight change from the 327, which only has the large N logo on the lateral side. The 237 also gets rid of the attention-drawing studded rubber outsole of the 327. 

The 237 features distinct, oversized paneling throughout the upper, giving the shoe an asymmetrical look that adds a new design element and allows New Balance to create colorways with various pops of complementary colors. 

The New Balance 237 isn’t simply a copy and paste retread of old sneaker silhouettes, though. Lee also added unique elements that make the 237 stand out from the shoes inspired. The herringbone tread, EVA midsole with an extended wedge under the heel, removable nylon inserts, sleek heel design, and angled New Balance logo on the heel all make the 237 a unique sneaker silhouette. 

The 237 was released globally via select retailers, such as newbalance.com, on February 6th, 2021, for a retail price of 85 USD. The first colorway for the 237 showcased its vibrant asymmetrical color-blocking abilities with a vivid combination of dark navy, rich forest green, spicy red, and mustard yellow, centered around a light grey oversized N logo.

Source: Goat.com

If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It

Like with the New Balance 327, to usher in the release of the 237, New Balance once again partnered up with Paris Fashion Brand Casablanca and its founder Charaf Tajer. The collaboration between Casablanca and the Boston-based footwear brand helped launch the 327 into prominence and has led to an ongoing relationship between the fashion brands. 

The Casablanca x New Balance 237 collaboration was first introduced alongside a rework of the 327. The 237 and 327 were released on February 27th, 2021, via the Casablanca website, retailed for 150 USD, and came in identical colorways. 

Styled in Casablanca’s signature jacquard monogram, the Casablanca x New Balance 237 “Munsell White/Green” colorway features textile overlays around the toe and heel area. The upper is made of a perforated white leather upper for increased breathability and a more sporty look. The oversized N logo is cream leather and outlined in pink. The upper rests on a thick white midsole and a green herringbone rubber outsole. 

The design results in an effortlessly elegant sneaker with the versatility to function at a high level, whether it’s on the runway or a part of your everyday wardrobe.  

During an interview with Hypebeast, Charaf Tajer had this to say about the New Balance 237 silhouette and how the 327 influenced its design: 

“The 237 is a softer, more versatile silhouette. For us it was about bringing the effortless elegance of Casablanca into the design of the silhouette. With all of the New Balance collaborations we always work together on creating a classic silhouette that is timeless. It has the same DNA as the 327, but some of the lines and forms of the panels are less aggressive, more sleek. Straight lines are replaced with rippled lines that run through the silhouette from the toe box, to the outsole.”

New Balance and Casablanca would team up again and drop another dual release colorway for the 237 and 327. The “Red Monogram” 237 was released on May 21st, 2021, for a retail price of 130 USD. The Red Monogram marked the second time Casablanca collaborated on the 237 and the sixth time they collaborated on the 327. 

The Red monogram’s upper is crafted using perforated white leather with textile overlays ornamented with Moroccan tile-inspired red and green monogram Jacquard patterns positioned along the toe box and heel. A dual-layered oversized N logo dominates the sneaker’s quarter panels made with red leather and outlined in green. A laurel print decorates the woven tag, which runs down the length of the tongue, and the sneaker is mounted on an EVA midsole with a green rubber outsole.

While no longer available retail, both pairs of the Casablanca x New Balance 237s can be purchased from footwear resale websites such as StockXGOATStadium Goods, and Flight Club. The current resale value of the Casablanca 237s ranges from 90 USD to 200 USD, depending on the buyer’s size. 

Other 237 Collaborations

Since its release in 2021, the New Balance 237 has seen a variety of in-line colorways and some exciting collaborations hit the market. Because of the 237’s versatility and retro-modern design, the silhouette is a perfect canvas for designers to give their unique take. The 237 looks fantastic decked out in various vibrant colors and in subtler, more muted shades.

Sneakersnstuff x New Balance 237 Blue Racer Snake Collaboration

After starting the year with the made in the UK “SNS Sports World” New Balance 920, New Balance and Sneakernstuff pair up again in June of 2021 global retailer to release an exclusive colorway of the 237, the Blue Racer Snake

The ’70s-inspired 237 model gets reworked by Sneakersnstuff with a theme taken from the stunning-blue grey skin colors of the Blue Racer Snake, a nonvenomous species known for its eye-catching colors. 

The reptile is represented throughout the sneaker with the lightweight, breathable CORDURA mesh upper incorporating various shades of grey hairy suede overlays. The most obvious reference to the Blue Racer Snake is the faux snakeskin texture on the oversized N logo and heel tabs.

The SNS logo shares placement with the New Balance logo on each tongue. Hints of pink are placed throughout the top half, outlining the oversized N logo and being used on the New Balance and Sneakersnstuff branding, delivering a sharp contrast to the predominantly-muted colorway. The rubber outsole of the Blue Racer Snake is dark blue. 

To go along with the shoes, New Balance and Sneakersnstuff team up for a clothing collection, including two graphic tees, a tracksuit equipped with signature snake print, a cotton hoodie, cotton sweatpants, and a half-zip rain jacket. 

The New Balance x Sneakersnstuff Blue Racer Snake 237 was released on June 11th, 2021, for a retail price of 145 USD. 

Source: Sneakersnstuff.com

New Balance x Size? 237 Collaboration

Starting at the beginning of Summer 2021, UK retailer size? began releasing must-have New Balance colorways in the form of a grey take on the 57/40 and the “College Pack,” which featured the 550 and 574

In August of 2021, the UK retailer and Boston-based footwear brand teamed up again for another collaboration, updating the New Balance 237 silhouette. size? was looking to create a Summer iteration of the 237 that met the demands of the warmer Summer months.  

To ensure the wearer’s feet get the airflow necessary to keep their feet cool during the warmer months, the size? x New Balance 237 comes with a breathable white perforated leather base. Light grey suede overlays complement the neutral white upper. The oversize N logo adds more contrast with a dark grey color. 

The silhouette’s classic New Balance branding also appears on the tongue and heel, while an embroidered logo is placed on the insole, signifying the collaboration. On the bottom of the sneaker is a grey rubber sole. The New Balance 237 collaboration dropped on August 6th, 2021, through the size? online website. 

Men's 237 V1 Sneaker
$54.98

by New Balance 

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02/18/2024 09:05 am GMT

Where to Buy

The New Balance 237 can be purchased from significant shoe retailers’ websites in a wide range of styles and colorways, both in-line and collaborations. Pairs of the New Balance 237 are available on websites such as New BalanceDick’s Sporting GoodsAmazonDSW, and Zappos

Past releases and exclusive collaborations of the New Balance 237, like the New Balance x Casablanca, New Balance x size?, and New Balance x Sneakersnstuff, can be purchased from popular footwear resale websites such as StockXGOATStadium Goods, and Flight Club. Prices of the sneaker will vary based on the colorway, but the 237 typically resells at a modest price point between 80 USD to 200 USD. 

Source: Sneakernews.com

Pairs of the New Balance 327s can be purchased from shoe retailers in various styles and colorways. You can find them at New BalanceFootlockerDick’s Sporting GoodsFinishline, AmazonHibbett Sports, and Champ Sports.

The New Balance 327 retails for between 100 and 150 USD, depending on the style of the shoe and if it is a part of a collaboration.

The Casablanca x New Balance 327 collection and past colorways can be purchased from popular resale websites like StockXGOATStadium Goods, and Flight Club

With a wealth of iconic silhouettes from the 70s, 80s, and 90s to take inspiration from and New Balance’s focus on contemporary sneaker silhouettes that incorporate retro design elements, it’ll be interesting to see what the New Balance design team comes up with next. They can keep building up their already popular collections by seeking new collaborations or pushing the envelope and expanding their roster with more simple yet exceptionally versatile modern interpretations of their iconic designs. 

Source: Newbalance.com
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