Stone Island And New Balance Launch Partnership With Reworked RC Elite

Arguably one of the most anticipated new collaborative partnerships of 2021 is the newfound union between Stone Island and New Balance. Announced officially in March of this year, the label known for its innovative construction and dye methods brings its expertise to New Balance’s foremost in performance footwear through its Tokyo Studio initiative, seamlessly integrating a highly technical aesthetic with NB’s adherence to heritage. And while we may have expected some type of outdoor-ready footwear, it actually focuses on the brand’s foremost marathon shoe, arriving just in time for the upcoming Boston marathon on October 11th.

The RC ELITE, renowned for its FuelCell cushioning system, gets a completely reworked three-dimensional upper with the help of cutting edge materials and thin knit layers. The cut-away sectors of at the forefoot speaks to the brand’s mutual devotion to innovation and evolution as a classic NB model appears to be torn away to reveal a highly engineered interior. On the right forefoot is the modern NB racing logo, while the left shoe boasts the iconic compass logo of the Italian brand.

The tongue is also built with the lightweight knit skin and boasts call-outs to the Tokyo Design Studio and Stone Island Product Research, indicating both an experimental and avant-garde direction for this partnership. Needless to say, we’re quite excited to see what else is in the works.

The Stone Island x New Balance Tokyo Studio RC Elite_SI will officially release on October 7th at select Stone Island flagship locations* and then on October 12th on stoneisland.com. In Mainland China, the Stone Island WeChat store will launch the shoes on October 13th.

*In flagship stores in Italy, Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, the UK, USA, Canada, Japan, Korea, Singapore.
Frankfurt, Munich and Stockholm will end sale on Saturday, October 9th.