How Teddy Santis Became Creative Director of New Balance Made in USA

Teddy Santis became Creative Director of New Balance Made in USA in April 2021. The appointment marked a major step in his relationship with the Boston-based sportswear company. Before taking the role, Santis built Aime Leon Dore into a respected New York fashion label and developed several successful New Balance collaborations.

His appointment did not happen suddenly. Years of creative collaboration created a strong relationship between Santis and New Balance. His understanding of heritage sneakers, storytelling, New York culture, and contemporary fashion eventually led to a long-term creative position.

Teddy Santis Built Aime Leon Dore

Teddy Santis founded Aime Leon Dore in New York in 2014.

The brand quickly developed an identity around New York culture, classic sportswear, basketball, music, and refined casual clothing. Santis combined nostalgic references with contemporary styling, giving Aime Leon Dore a recognizable visual language.Shop Aime Leon Dore collections featuring contemporary streetwear, classic essentials, and everyday fashion.

That creative direction later became important to New Balance.

Santis understood how older sneaker silhouettes could feel relevant to modern fashion audiences without losing their original character.

The New Balance Relationship Started First

Santis was already working with New Balance before receiving his creative director position.

Aime Leon Dore's first New Balance collaboration arrived in 2019 with the 997. Additional projects followed, helping establish a relationship based on more than a single limited release.

The collaborations demonstrated that Santis could reinterpret New Balance products while respecting their heritage.

This became an important foundation for his future role.

The 550 Became a Major Turning Point

The Aime Leon Dore and New Balance 550 collaboration became especially influential.

Santis brought the previously overlooked basketball silhouette back into contemporary fashion conversations. The vintage-inspired design worked naturally with Aime Leon Dore's 1990s New York aesthetic.

The collaboration helped demonstrate Santis's ability to identify potential in older New Balance models.

It also strengthened the creative relationship between the two brands before his official appointment.

New Balance Announced the Appointment

On April 5, 2021, New Balance officially announced Santis as Creative Director of its Made in USA line.

The company described the role as a multi-year relationship, with the first Santis-designed products planned for 2022. New Balance also said the partnership would focus on premium products, quality design, heritage, and expanding the Made in USA platform globally.

This was also a significant appointment because Santis became the first person to hold this creative director role for the Made in USA platform.

Why New Balance Chose Teddy Santis

Santis brought a combination of fashion credibility and genuine appreciation for New Balance.

His work with Aime Leon Dore already showed an ability to connect heritage sneakers with contemporary culture. His collaborations also generated strong attention among sneaker and fashion audiences.

New Balance therefore gained a creative leader who understood both product history and modern consumer culture.

Santis also shared values that aligned with New Balance.

He specifically praised the company for building its business around integrity and authenticity rather than temporary hype.

Made in USA Was the Perfect Platform

The Made in USA division already represented an important part of New Balance's identity.

The line focuses on premium footwear manufactured in the United States, with qualifying products containing at least 70% domestic value. Manufacturing takes place at New Balance facilities in Maine and Massachusetts.

Santis's design philosophy fit naturally with that heritage-focused approach.

He could introduce fresh colors, materials, photography, and storytelling while keeping the established New Balance identity intact.

His Creative Vision Focused on Heritage

Santis did not completely redesign New Balance.

Instead, he worked with existing silhouettes and historical references.

His approach emphasized premium materials, refined color combinations, vintage influences, and subtle design changes. This strategy allowed familiar models to feel new while preserving their connection to New Balance history.

The goal was to make Made in USA relevant to a broader global fashion audience.

The First Collection Arrived in 2022

Santis's first official Made in USA collection launched in April 2022.

The debut collection focused on three versions of the 990: the 990v1, 990v2, and 990v3. The footwear used materials including suede and mesh with restrained grey and off-white color palettes.

The collection also included apparel such as sweatshirts, sweatpants, and shorts.

New Balance organized the product strategy around three categories: Elevated Legacy, Uniform Staples, and Quickstrike.

This structure showed how Santis planned to approach the entire Made in USA platform rather than focusing only on individual sneakers.

The 990 Became His Creative Canvas

Choosing the 990 for the debut collection made strategic sense.

The model represents one of New Balance's most recognizable heritage platforms. Santis could therefore demonstrate his creative approach without introducing an unfamiliar silhouette.

The first collection explored different versions of the 990 while maintaining recognizable New Balance construction and proportions.

This balance became central to the Santis era.

From New York to New England

One interesting part of Santis's role is the cultural connection between his background and New Balance's manufacturing heritage.

Santis comes from Queens and built Aime Leon Dore around New York culture.

New Balance Made in USA, meanwhile, connects strongly with the company's New England manufacturing history.

His role brought these two perspectives together.

The result combined New York fashion sensibility with New Balance's American manufacturing heritage.

Storytelling Became More Important

Santis also brought his approach to storytelling into New Balance.

His work at Aime Leon Dore frequently uses people, locations, music, nostalgia, and cultural references to give products greater context.

At New Balance, he applied similar thinking to the Made in USA platform.

New Balance specifically highlighted the opportunity to create authentic stories and global campaigns around real people and shared values.

This helped position Made in USA as more than a manufacturing label.

The Role Changed New Balance's Fashion Presence

Santis's appointment reflected a wider shift in sneaker culture.

Sportswear companies increasingly worked with fashion designers and creative directors to develop long-term identities instead of relying only on individual collaborations. GQ described Santis's appointment as part of this broader movement toward lasting creative partnerships.

His position gave New Balance a stronger connection to contemporary fashion.

At the same time, Santis gained a much larger platform for developing his design ideas.

Final Thoughts

Teddy Santis became Creative Director of New Balance Made in USA through years of creative collaboration.

His work with Aime Leon Dore established a strong relationship with New Balance, beginning with collaborations such as the 997 and later expanding across important models.

New Balance officially appointed him in April 2021, with his first collection scheduled for 2022.

That debut collection eventually focused on the 990 family and established his approach to premium materials, heritage, storytelling, and contemporary styling.

The appointment ultimately connected two different strengths: Santis's New York fashion perspective and New Balance's American manufacturing heritage. That combination created a new chapter for the Made in USA platform and strengthened Santis's influence across modern sneaker culture.