If you were to ask any number of sneakerheads who makes the best collaborations, you would likely hear the name Concepts in a good number of the answers. It's hard to believe it now, but Concepts wasn't even its own shop when they first collaborated with New Balance on this Made In The USA 576 colab. Concepts began as a literal concept store inside The Tannery in Boston's Harvard Square back in 1996. And while the real history typically told about Concepts and its ties to The Tannery (and all the rumors, nicknames, lawsuits, and racism that come with it) is often overlooked by most writers, it's hard to ignore it when it's name is literally labeled on the box of its first collaboration from 2007... M576TNRY. For the record, I've never had a bad experience with Concepts, other than a couple of really rough hangovers after drinking with Deon and Chedda at the trade shows many, many years ago. To my knowledge, Concepts has always been operated by Tarek Hassan, and the finger-pointing is usually aimed at his uncle, Sam, who started The Tannery in the 1970s. That said, it's hard to overstate the energy and creativity of Concepts' impact on the sneaker world. All of that discussion is for another time. The M576TNRY is one I've shared on our Discord Community Calls a number of times because I think it represents a very interesting time for sneakers. Before collaborators had free rein to create things like Lobster SB Dunks, they had to take baby steps with the brands they worked with. Concepts' first collab with New Balance is exactly that: a simple colorway, interesting materials, and a hang tag. None of the "design" is even a permanent part of the production. It may seem unique, but even the "Made In USA" script on the heel was something that New Balance did for other shoes during that era. If I'm being honest, it's not a great colorway. It's not bad. The lime green is odd to me. The 3M tongue is dope. The patent leather is meh. The nubuck toe is great. The overall style of the shoe is about a 5 out of 10 to me. But as for historic value? To me, it's one of those shoes that's worth well more than what you can get for it. The pair pictured is on eBay now if you want a pair (not mine).
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