If you’ve spent any time scrolling through recent style blogs or hanging out in your city's trendier areas you’ll have clocked them: the New Balance x Miu Miu 530SLs. Slim, minimal, and eye-wateringly expensive.
At just over £1,000 a pair and now sold out everywhere, they’re not exactly a mass-market proposition. But they’ve been wildly in demand, thanks to that quietly luxurious blend of noughties performance design and low-to-the-ground styling. And now, New Balance has finally introduced a more attainable option: the 204L.
Dropping on 30 July, the 204L is New Balance’s latest take on the slim-soled runner. It takes its cues from two different decades – the 1970s and the early 2000s – and lands somewhere in the middle. The tooling is low and streamlined, but the upper is more detailed, with layered suede, techy mesh and subtle Y2K-inspired overlays.
The launch colourway, “Mushroom/Arid Stone”, is all soft grey and taupe – quiet, wearable, and exactly the kind of understated look that made the Miu Miu collab so appealing in the first place. It’ll be followed by a three-piece collaboration with Kith, in pastel-heavy shades called Bluebell, Camellia and Sunburst. Summer sneakers, done properly.
According to senior designer Pierome Sar, the 204L was about creating something versatile and original – a shoe that could stand on its own, rather than reference older New Balance silhouettes. It still feels familiar, but not in a recycled way. More like something you’ve always needed without knowing it.
Retailing at £95, the New Balance 204L drops on 30 July at 3pm BST from newbalance.co.uk and selected retailers. If recent form is anything to go by, don’t hang around.
Next up: 13 of the best minimalist sneakers.
