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Shoe Style Tips :: New Balance Athletic Shoes
New Balance Athletic Shoes: A Review of New Balance Athletic Wear and Shoes
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New Balance athletic shoes have gone from a niche running shoe to a major brand in the last ten years. To find out how they did it, keep reading.
New Balance Prices
Price is where New Balance athletic shoes excel as they were designed to be an affordable, but still quality brand of running shoe. Their shoes typically retail for between $50 and $70, an incredible value when compared with similar brands like Nike ($80 to $110) or Adidas ($75 to $120).
Thanks to their lower prices, New Balance has been able to stay competitive and appeal to budget-savvy shoppers.
New Balance Comfort
Next to price, it’s the variety of widths that New Balance athletic shoes come in that attract fans and new buyers. Unlike many other athletic shoe manufacturers, New Balance makes their shoes in a variety of widths and sizes.
Few athletic shoe companies offer their products in widths like EE, which is why New Balance has such a hold on the niche market for specialty-sized athletic footwear.
New Balance Labor Policies
Today, New Balance manufactures approximately 25 percent of all its products in the United States and while this percentage is significantly higher than its competitors, like Nike, the company has still come under fire from organizations like the China Labor Watch.
The company has five factories in the United States – two in Massachusetts and three in Maine. Their U.S. factories are unionized and responsible for making most of the company’s footwear, but not their athletic clothing.
New Balance has a number one ranking for its overall responsibility and ethics when compared to brands like Fila, Nike, Puma and Adidas. These rankings from the Co-Op America’s Responsible Shopper Guide.
New Balance Style
Because of New Balance’s progressive labor policies, the brand is very popular with young people. In turn, the shoes’ almost retro styling reflects that “old school” aesthetic.
That said, the company makes a range of athletic shoes designed to appeal to everyone from trend-setting youth to retired grandmothers.
New Balance Quality and Durability
New Balance athletic shoes tend to be generally well-made and will last. Most runners find they last the standard 300 to 400 miles and hold up as well as similar, competing brands.
New Balance shoes have a tendency to separate from the sole at the toe edge, but this typically only occurs after a year or two of use and at a time when most shoe buyers are replacing their gym shoes with a new pair.
The Final Word on New Balance Shoes
Overall, New Balance athletic shoes represent an excellent value. The prices are great, they come in custom widths and they’re made to last by a company with somewhat ethical labor policies.
Admittedly, New Balance may not have the marketing dollars of its competitors, but they do have the products and prices to stay competitive.
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ShoeStyleTips.com :: New Balance Athletic Shoes