Sneaker News Japanese label Issey Miyake honed in on the concept of barefoot mobility and the natural form and function of the foot for their New Balance collaboration. Thusly, their leveraging of Vibram soles makes perfect sense given the latter’s breakthrough FiveFinger sole/shoes that popularized the barefoot approach in the mid-2000s. Simultaneously, it has us wondering how they’d execute a more popular NB model such as the New Balance 1000 or even the New Balance 1906 Loafer.
The starting point was the New Balance MT10, itself quite similar to the FiveFinger. It’s super-lightweight, meant to be worn without socks, and truly not for everyone. In keeping with Issey Miyake’s “natural and honest shape” — the thesis of its current SS24 line, designer Satoshi Kondo swapped out the typical sport-specific materials (breathable meshes) with premium leathers, executing the super-minimal shoe’s ground feel with Vibram soles. The whole point of the MT10 sneaker was to allow runners to feel the surface and indirectly discover new muscles in their feet that aren’t typically activated with conventional running shoes. Stacked foam cushioning is meant to separate the runner from pebbles and grooves of the natural road in favor of efficient strides. The MT10O by Issey Miyake wants you to feel it all.
Issey Miyake will release its New Balance MT10O in its three colorways on May 15 at selected retailers in Japan, followed by a wider global launch on June 14th. The three colorways — white, black, and blue green — are integrated with with the color palette of the brand’s current SS24 line.
