New Balance was founded in 1906 by Englishman William J. Riley. In the beginning, New Balance mainly focused on orthopedic products and specialized in arch supports. In 1934, William Riley joined Arthur Hall, which was then selling arch supports to people who worked on their feet all day. In the early 1950s, there was a high demand for New Balance products, so much so that athletes were requesting custom-made sneakers. In 1954, Arthur Hall sold New Balance to his daughter and her husband Paul Kidd. When Paul Kidd took control with his wife, the demand and products produced exploded.
In 1961, the New Balance Trackster was released, the first high-performance running shoe. The Trackster has a corrugated sole for traction and was available in different widths.
In 1972, New Balance was sold again, but this time to an outsider from the Jim S. Davis family. In 1976, New Balance was still small, but made a global breakthrough with its 320 model and won first place in the Runner's World Magazine award. To date, New Balance has expanded its running shoe business into an entire athletic footwear empire, including sneakers for basketball, tennis, and hiking.