Ministry of Supply X New Balance 574

Inspired by the first steps taken on the Moon by Neil Armstrong in 1969, we’re introducing our first sneaker exclusive with New Balance. Built on the iconic 574 platform, these sneakers take advantage of the radically engineered technologies that power our clothing to take a small step forward in sneaker design.

The Mission that Continues to Inspire
At Ministry of Supply, our inspiration drive our innovations. The audacity of sending humans to the moon motivates our process every day. We incorporated visual cues from the lunar mission into the MOS NB 574 to celebrate this feat.

Ministry of Supply and New Balance.
Ministry of Supply and New Balance are pioneers of the apparel and footwear industries, and we both call Boston our home. We’ve been working with the New Balance team for over 18 months to design and build this sneaker concept using our respective core technologies.

Kinetic fabric.
Kinetic is made from Japanese Primeflex polyester, a warp-knit fabric that has the feel and structure of a woven, and the breathability and stretch of a knit. We used a cationic dyeing process to give the fabric its heathered lunar look, and incorporated Kinetic into the tongue and upper of the sneaker to take advantage of its stretch, breathability, and moisture-wicking capabilities.

Lunar suede and footbed.
Neil Armstrong famously described the surface of the Moon as “fine and powdery… like powdered charcoal.” We gave New Balance’s signature suede the lunar treatment for the MOS NB 574.

“Strain Analysis” toe box.
Photogrammetric Strain Analysis is the tool we use to understand movement and translate it into extremely high-performance clothing. We adapted the cross-hatch visualization of strain analysis onto the toe box ventilation pattern of the sneaker, enhancing airflow and mobility.

Re-Engineered shape.
The New Balance 574 has been around for over 30 years, the latest iteration features slight tweaks to the profile of the upper and the mold of the sole, giving an updated and modern stance, while still staying true to the 574 silhouette.

How it's Made.
It takes many steps to build a shoe. We rolled camera as the MOS NB 574 came to life in Lawrence, Massachusetts.