Hitherto the embrace of the New Balance aesthetic, footwear performance has always been their terrain. Whether it’s the asphalt of the concrete jungle or the earth of the great outdoors, shoes apropos is in their repertoire. For the latter, there’s the titular Fresh Foam X More Trail v3 keeping the feet cool, comfortable, and cushioned.

There’s the Bio-based content—made from renewable resource to reduce their carbon footprint—integrated into the Fresh Foam X midsole; the Toe Protect technology to shield the feet from rocks, roots, and debris; and the synthetic mesh for breathability. It’s function over fashion first, until Tokyo Design Studio creates one with equilibrium: function AND fashion.

TDS is New Balance’s ‘avant-garde’ division, their experimental design team. They produce two new colorways of the More Trail v3, a duo of singular, uniform color-blocking: one in all-black, another with a caramel hue. It walks the same trail as its contemporaries in terms of specifications, but it widely deviates in terms of aesthetic. The team’s design language is further expressed in an accompanying apparel, a thoughtful, genderless line with high-spec textiles.

Find them on New Balance’s website come 31 March. Somewhere in an NB laboratory is KITH’s 998.