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We have seen this trend now: since a couple of years, most brands started shying away from the usual neutral > support > motion control way of classifying their running shoes. We have seen this with Nike and Brooks.
New Balance is also moving in that direction, splitting their collection in 3 big buckets:
Let’s now look at the shoes in each bucket, what technologies they adopt and let’s try and make sense on who should be wearing what.
The Fresh Foam collection takes its name from NB's new foam material. These shoes have been engineered with the analysis of data from thousands of athletes.
Fresh Foam midsoles are laser engraved to reduce weight and provide different kinds of cushion and support on different part of the shoe, based on the athelete's need. The results are extremely versatile shoes that can take you from easy runs to races and anything in between.
NBx includes all the "traditional" running shoes from New Balance that didn't really fit into one or the other category, but that are true and tested milestones from New Balance that have hundreds of thousands of loyal fans.
The focus of the shoes in this category is to be trustworthy workhorses that are reliable for high mileage training or for racing.
Shoes in this category do not have a medial wedge or similar stability elements.
NBx includes all the "traditional" running shoes from New Balance that didn't really fit into one or the other category, but that are true and tested milestones from New Balance that have hundreds of thousands of loyal fans.
The focus of the shoes in this category is to be trustworthy workhorses that are reliable for high mileage training or for racing.
Shoes in this category have a firmer medial wedge or similar support feature.
Shoes in the FuelCell collection are lightweight, responsive and engineered for speed. FuelCell is a TPU foam blend and has nitrogen infused into it which gives it its signature bouncy feel.
Shoes in the New Balance trail series have an excellent balance of comfort and performance for any type of terrain.
Most of you will be familiar with NB’s most popular models of a few years back: MR1080 v4, MR890 v3, WR1260v5… there is a surefire way to exactly understand the kind of shoe by looking at this number – the image below will help you understand.
Basically each model name/code was composed by 4 sections:
These numbers were not exactly customer friendly – but I have to admit that once you know the logic, it actually makes a lot of sense.
If you found this guide useful, have a look at our other ones!
