New Balance’s All-New 509 Sneaker Is a Wildly Clean Dad Shoe

Oct 17, 2024

New Balance has once again raided its vast and varied running shoe archive and it has returned with a niche archival design: the New Balance 509.

A little-known dad shoe from the early naughts, the 509 is poised to become the latest old-school running shoe to be revived for its elderly looks.

New Balance is reintroducing the model to the market by way of an exclusive collaboration with designer Kim Dohee who has created two colorways (black and purple) through ice dying.

Each pair is uniquely colored as the ice melts during Dohee’s laborious dying technique, creating a rich color complexion.

The handcrafted process Dohee brings to this sneaker is more akin to a work of art than a mass-produced sneaker collaboration — hence why the designer is hosting an exhibition at New Balance’s Seongsu store from October 18-28 — making it easy to get lost in the magic of his ice dying technique and forget that this is a New Balance model’s debut outing.

Subtly updated for its new-found role as a lifestyle sneaker, the New Balance 509 stays pretty true to its original shape with a mesh-heavy base and contrasting technical paneling.

The shoe shares a similar look with other New Balance models recently repurposed for their stylistic flair, such as the 1906 or the 530, however, it is slightly more stripped-back. A more mesh-heavy base with relatively simple overlays makes this one of New Balance’s cleanest dad shoes.

Set to be released on October 18, exclusive to New Balance stores in Korea, the Kim Dohee collaboration promises to be the first of a barrage of New Balance 509 drops (some of which have started circulating online).

Only two days after New Balance brought back a similarly chunky dad shoe (the NB 740 first released on October 16), the Boston-based sportswear giant is further bolstering its vast dad shoe selection.