It’s no secret that the Made in USA Creative Director, Teddy Santis, has a penchant for reviving old and forgotten New Balance kicks. For those that fall under his brand Aimé Leon Dore’s collaborative umbrella, they are usually injected with muted color accents and a predominantly white upper. However, recent leaks of a new 550 colorway hints that Santis is moving towards bolder, more saturated colors for his designs.

Such a theory is gaining more credence as images of Aimé Leon Dore x New Balance 650R in never-seen-before colorways have surfaced. Speculated to be under the New York label’s Fall/Winter 2022 collection, these first looks showcase that the usually-dominating white has been relegated to the tongue, mesh collar and toebox. Instead, royal blues and dark greens take over the leather overlays on the basketball silhouette. The N logo, too, dons a new appearance — instead of a puffed look, it has evolved into a raised textured leather that ages the model significantly.

Such an overhaul is a stark departure from the first Aimé Leon Dore x New Balance 650R pack that popped up in April 2022 for Spring season, which saw the shoe in pristine white leather modernly accented with varsity colors. In some ways, then, we can expect ALD’s Fall/Winter collection to have a vintage and retro theme that aligns with the season’s typically sombre mood. This is especially so, given that account @sneakertigger dubbed this collaboration a “heritage” sneaker.

No official launch date have been tagged to the release of these photos, but we’re sure they’ll be revealed soon given the impending fall season. Stay tuned to our magazine for the latest updates!

In other New Balance-related news, check out this size? x New Balance 1906R that’s (probably) making its way to us real soon.

Images via @sneakertigger