New Balance
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| New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. | |
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| Type | Privately held company |
| Founded | 1906 as New Balance Arch Support Company |
| Headquarters | Boston, Massachusetts |
| Key people | William J. Riley, founder Jim Davis, Chairman Robert T. DeMartini, CEO Jim Tompkins, President and COO John Withee, Exec. Vice President and CFO |
| Industry | Footwear |
| Products | Athletic shoes, shoes, apparel |
| Revenue | ▲ $1.55 billion USD (2006)[1] |
| Employees | 2,800 worldwide (March 2006)[1] |
| Website | http://www.newbalance.com/ |
New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (NBAS) is a footwear manufacturer based in Boston, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1906 as the New Balance Arch Support Company. Eschewing expensive advertising campaigns, it has nevertheless grown to be one of the largest makers of sports footwear in the world.
New Balance is notable in that it has continued to maintain a manufacturing presence in the United States (as of 2007) as well as in the United Kingdom for the European market--in contrast to its competitors in the same market space, such as Nike, Adidas, and Reebok.
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[edit] History
In 1906, William J. Riley, a 33 year old British immigrant, founded the New Balance Arch Support Company, which manufactured arch supports and other accessories designed to improve shoe fit, in Boston, Massachusetts. In 1934, Riley took on as a partner his top salesman, Arthur Hall, who had found his niche by marketing his products to policemen and other people whose jobs required them to spend a lot of time standing. In 1956, Hall sold the business to his daughter Eleanor and her husband Paul Kidd.
Eleanor and Paul continued to sell mainly arch supports until 1961, when they designed and manufactured the "Trackster," the world's first running shoe made with a ripple sole. It was also the first running shoe to come in varying widths. The Trackster became the shoe of choice for running coaches and fitness directors, and led to New Balance's growing reputation for manufacturing innovative and specialized footwear in multiple widths.
Marketing was mostly by word-of-mouth or local sports fairs, and sales languished, until 1972, when current Chairman Jim Davis bought the company on the day of the Boston Marathon. At the time, the company consisted of just six people making thirty pairs of shoes a day. Jim's wife Anne joined the company in 1978, and the two pledged to uphold the company's traditional commitment to individual preferences, customer service, and quality products. Their timing was perfect, as the Boston area soon became a hotbed of the running boom which struck the U.S. in the 1970s. Their product line expanded and sales skyrocketed. The homegrown company prospered, and the Davises looked to expand New Balance into a global company. The company is now run by California native Rob DeMartini. DeMartini's background includes Procter and Gamble and Gillette Shave Company. Critics say DeMartini big business experience is exactly what New Balance needs to take a global stance. Today, thirty percent of the shoes sold in the European market are manufactured at the New Balance facility in England.
[edit] Shoes
New Balance is one of few shoe manufacturers to offer the majority of its shoes in a wide range of widths, typically from B or D to 4E.
New Balance does not give names to the shoes it sells, instead referring to them by a 3- or 4-digit model number. This is done to "place an emphasis on the New Balance philosophy, not any one particular shoe".[1] When a shoe is redesigned, the model number is increased by one. So far, no one seems to know what the number scheme actually stands for besides changing frequently due to redesigns.
[edit] Made in USA stance
New Balance is one of several shoe companies that still makes their products in the United States, and is the only shoe company that makes athletic sneakers domestically, stating on their website that around one quarter of their shoes are American-made in their own five factories, two of which are in Massachusetts and three of which are in Maine, and in a supplier's factory in California. While many of their products are manufactured in China, some of their higher-end running shoes are manufactured in the United States, such as the 992 models, which are easily recognizable by their typical gray and trademark 'USA' stitched on the back.
In accordance with federal trade law and their own policies, New Balance labels all shoes with a domestic material content of 70% "Made in the USA" and will differentiate for shoes that are made in the US of imported materials. From New Balance's website: "We believe most consumers think "Made in USA" means that real manufacturing jobs were provided to U.S. workers in order to make that product. The shoes produced in our U.S. factories are made by U.S. workers using both U.S. and imported materials. Where the level of domestic value is at least 70%, we have labeled the shoe "Made in USA." Where it falls below that level, we have qualified it as containing both domestic and imported materials. This determination is based in part on a survey of consumers conducted by the FTC."
In 1994, New Balance manufactured 70% of its shoes in the United States.[2] It claims to have boosted its manufacturing capacity by 45% since 1995, suggesting that while the majority of its shoes are manufactured in China, it is maintaining a significant manufacturing presence domestically.
[edit] References
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This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2008) |
- ^ a b Fact Sheet: New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (PDF). New Balance. Retrieved on 2006-09-23.
- ^ Shoe and Tell: The Quest for American-Made Sneakers
