New Balance 990 V4 Private Trunkshow & Community Pop-Up Experience/Release Event: FuseBox Radio x BlackRadioIsBack.com Photo Essay


On a brisk Friday afternoon in February, the FuseBox Radio Broadcast and BlackRadioIsBack.com crew were able to head over into D.C. for the Made In The DMV and Shoe City Presents: A Private Experience + Release Event for the New Balance 990v4 shoe at Smith Public Trust

For those who aren't familiar, New Balance is essentially the unofficial official shoe of the D.C. Metro area for at least the past 30+ years, especially for those who grew up in D.C., Prince Georges County, parts of Southern Maryland and Northern Virginia. 

If you lived in the area, if you haven't owned a pair of these sneakers at some point in time, I'm pretty sure you know of someone who did. 

The New Balance 990 series (usually in the mutli-greys on white version) has been a staple around this area since it's debut in 1982 in the realms of both comfort and style. 

As per the New Balance website's description on the history of the shoe:
The idea for the 990 was originally born from a challenge issued by New Balance Chairman, Jim Davis, to the design team to create the most innovative running shoe in the industry. Although it spent several years in development, the 990 debuted in 1982 and proved it was well worth the wait. 

In 2012, the 990 series celebrated its 30th anniversary, but if its history tells us anything, it's that we can expect many, many more years of the 990. 

The 990 was constructed differently than any New Balance shoe before it, featuring a range of new technologies, including a heel motion control device. The revolutionary design of the original 990 gave runners a shoe that provided stability, cushioning and flexibility, all in one shoe. 

The 990 was the first athletic shoe to debut at $100 and because of its price point, many doubted its potential in the competitive running market. Initial projected sales were set at 5,000 pairs in the first year, but the 990 silenced doubters as it recorded ten times that projection in just half the time. 
In six months, orders for the 990 reached 50,000. Since its incredible debut, the 990's momentum never slowed down. To date, well over 10 million pairs have been sold around the world. 

Since its debut in 1982, the 990 has been a crucial part of our deep roots in domestic manufacturing. As the only major athletic shoe company that currently manufactures footwear in the U.S., this distinction is yet another reason why the 990 embodies New Balance culture and values so closely. 

We are proud to be the only major company to make or assemble more than 4 million pairs of athletic footwear per year in the USA, which represents a limited portion of our U.S. sales. Where the domestic value is at least 70%, we label our shoes Made in the USA.
The event was a good time where a lot of folks representing the multi-faceted #DMV (D.C., Maryland and Virginia) Hip-Hop community of artists, non-profits, business people, media and more came out and were able to build with each other in numerous positive ways while checking out this latest fashion release.

Check out some of the pictures we took during that evening of quality vibes, music and footwear and hope that everyone enjoys them!

** All pictures taken by Mary Nichols (DJ Fusion/FuseBox Radio Broadcast) under a "Creative Commons Attribution - No Derivatives" license. Please feel free to use & share them if you wish with attribution/credit to the photographer (besides these pictures, there are plenty more from this event [over 20+] and others over at the official FuseBox Radio Broadcast's Flickr Page and Behance/Prosite Page) ... thank you! **
















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