New Balance
American athletic footwear. Boston, Massachusetts. The counterexample the running shoes essay leans on: still owns and expands US factories.
Status: Approved
- Founded
- 1906
- Website
- newbalance.com
- HQ
- USA
- Manufacturing
- USA,UK,Vietnam,Various
- Ownership type
- Family-owned
Ownership
Family-owned: Jim Davis bought the company in 1972 — the exact decade everyone else left for Asia — and the Davis family still owns it. Made in USA lines are a minority of production but the US factories are operating and growing.
Why Approved
Owns factories in a category where almost nobody does, and put $65M into expanding them in 2024. Asterisks stated plainly: US-made is a minority of output; the Made-in-USA claim runs on 70% domestic value against the FTC's all-or-virtually-all standard; and Cristostomo v. New Balance (D. Mass 1:21-cv-12095, Made-in-USA labeling class action) was dismissed with prejudice by joint stipulation on 2024-05-10 — no class certified, terms undisclosed.
Reversibility
What would change our verdict
Sale. Closure or contraction of US factories. A revived Made-in-USA labeling action that produces findings.
Read the full investigation
Track This Brand
When the verdict changes, you'll hear first.
Brands on this Ledger shift status as ownership changes or new investigations surface. The newsletter is how subscribers find out, and where the full reporting lives.
No spam. Nobody pays me to say nice things. Unsubscribe anytime.