New Balance + formlabs: Pace of Change
By partnering with formlabs, a longstanding pioneer in 3D printers, high end materials and professional software, New Balance has been able to start sprinting down a new path in product development. The additive manufacturing and rapid prototyping tools that formlabs provides enables the shoemaker’s designers to iterate in-house and create solutions for mass manufacture as well as individual customers. This scalable model promises massive and beneficial disruptions to a global brand’s entire business model.
Assignment Idea: If the Shoe Fits
Description
The development of the shoe throughout history has assisted New Balance with the possibilities of creating, producing and selling new designs using 3D technology. Read the brief overview to learn more about how shoes have evolved.
A Brief (40,000 Year) History
40,000 years ago early mankind felt the need to protect their feet from the elements. Depending on the geographical location and the climate, these protective shoes consisted of various forms of materials such as animal hides and furs. During the classical antiquity age, the right to wear shoes was something that was determined by social status.
Through the Middle Ages, shoes with lacing, straps, slip-on and buttons were being worn. The wearer’s social status was strictly regulated through the toe length (the shoe tip bent upward). The longer the toe tip (princes and earls were 2.5 feet) the higher the status. Heels for men and women were also worn for the purpose of increasing the heights of the wearer.
The Industrial Age brought about practical men’s shoes that were sewn and dismissed the concept of showing social status through shoes. Shoe fit was also introduced along with the concept of right and left shoes. In the 20th century, shoes started to be made from materials and processes that allow for varying costs, durability and faster production. They were designed with function in mind over aesthetic.
Think about the New Balance video clip and the history of shoes. Design a prototype shoe that meets specific criteria. Be prepared to present your prototype along with potential materials, cost, function and any new features that you might have added that have not been seen on any shoe previously. Be creative.
Subject Areas
Anthropology, Gender Studies, Marketing, Theater
Deliverables
Choose one and focus on (comfort, support, speed, wear, etc) in a design sketch or 3D print (optional):
- a men’s or women’s prototype running shoe that focuses on a specific need for the runner
- a men’s or women’s prototype dress shoe that focuses on a specific need for the consumer
- a child’s prototype shoe that could revolutionize shoes (a shoe that grows with the child for example
- a prototype of a style of shoe that might be worn by someone with a high social status from a time period of your choosing (past or future)
Description (Business)
Work with a partner or in a group to design a business model for launching your shoe. Focus on the development of this product from start to finish. Include cost, investments, supply chain, packaging, marketing, etc.
Be prepared to pitch your shoe launch to the class.
Subject Areas
Business, Supply Chain Management
Deliverables
- design a shoe for a specific consumer (above)
- detail costs associated with investments, supply chain, packaging, marketing, etc
- create a pitch supported by video (optional) and slides