The Next Great Aimé Leon Dore New Balance Is a Wild, Wet Wonder
New Balance and Aimé Leon Dore take drip very seriously.
For its Spring/Summer 2025 collection, Aimé Leon Dore took its handsome approach to the beach, New Balance water shoes included.
The SS25 collection, inspired by founder Teddy Santis’ Mediterranean roots, takes influence from both the streets of New York and the coasts of Greece. The usual ALD items are present for the season, like tailored suits, preppy knit quarter-zips and Ralph Lauren-flavored polos.
But ALD SS25 also features an undeniably aquatic undertone rafting throughout the collection by way of chino shorts, neon swimming trunks and a collaborative New Balance sneaker that more than slightly recalls a water shoe in shape and form.
Quick-drying, low-profile water shoes were once one of the most uncool beachwear accessories, right next to pool floaties and nose-pinching clips. Just an aesthetic nightmare all around.
But ALD, which has a rich history of breathing new life into forgotten New Balance silhouettes like the tall 650R basketball shoe, has turned a potentially function-first shoe into a real looker.
Kitted with a Vibram outsole and pull-tab laces, the SS25 ALD New Balance shoe looks ready to take on any number of activities aside from merely taking a dip.
Beyond its apparent quick-dry capabilities, though, the shoe also looks really cool. Its foot-hugging upper taps into the current flat sneaker buzz while its minimalist lace construction adds much-needed ease to the ocean of skinny shoes.
In fact, ALD's latest New Balance most closely resembles Issey Miyake's slick barefoot shoe from 2024, at least as far as low-profile NB sneakers are concerned. It's worth noting, though, that ALD's New Balance likely isn't actually a water shoe but a climbing shoe, as it uses the same silhouette as a forthcoming Japanese New Balance sneaker
Sill, ALD and New Balance are hardly the only ones hip to the subtle charms of the humble water shoe.
From Nike's retro Aqua Turf to Crocs' Quick Trail Low, the weird water shoe hall of fame is always looking for new members. Aimé Leon Dore’s New Balance water shoe is just the latest inductee.
