Before there were Air Jordans and Yeezy Boosts, there was Bally.
The high-end Swiss shoemaker has been designing sneakers since the 1930s, catering first to sports such as golf and basketball, and then embracing them as everyday footwear. As the OG designer sneaker maker, Bally became a status symbol in the mid-1980s when rap stars including Doug E. Fresh helped boost its name through street style and lyricism during the emerging urban hip-hop movement. (In the classic hit “La Di Da Di,” rapper Slick Rick even sang an ode to the brand: “Fresh dressed like a million bucks/Threw on the Bally shoes and the fly green socks.”)
Now, in the most fitting of #ThrowbackThursdays, the brand is reintroducing four replicas of its best sneaker styles from past decades, launching several colorways of both men’s and women’s iterations, including hip-hop era models, tennis shoes and sporty runners. And there’s no better time to revisit the archives than the present — retro sneakers have made their comeback, dominating the fashion and athletic footwear markets for at least two years now.
Watch on FN
Designed to withstand the elements of sport, Bally’s vintage-inspired lace-ups feature modern fabrications of the 1965 Super Smash plimsoll, the 1974 Vita-Parcours with its classic checkerboard motif as well as 1983’s The Competition tennis shoe and The Galaxy, which the brand describes as its lightest sneaker. All styles retail from $325 to $450.
To the brand, the message is clear: “Bally is Back.”
Want more?
Chinese Textile Giant Buys Bally in Latest Global Shopping Move
The Best Retro Sneakers That Don’t Look Retro
