New Balance and Mediahub Turn Highsnobiety Grey for Grey Day 2023

12th May is Grey Day around the world. Every year, New Balance dedicates one day in May to honour the colour that it is known for worldwide. 

The late ‘70s and ‘80s were known for their booming consumerist culture; chunky phones, spandex, neon everything, and big hair were in abundance, but this moment in time was also the birth of the running phenomenon.

Unlike other brands who saw this as an opportunity to dish out one expensive neon sneaker after another, in classic New Balance style, the Boston label went against the status quo, relying on the subtle tone of grey and its in-house expertise in materiality to take the brand to new nuanced heights. 

By using grey, New Balance provides a solution for urban runners worldwide whose white trainers get destroyed by dirty city conditions. That sweet grey suede of the brand’s shoes not only reinforces durability but matches the colour of urban environments and fits seamlessly into the consumer lifestyle. 

To mark this special day in its calendar, every year, New Balance goes all out, unveiling and curating various grey silhouettes to keep the legacy alive — and 2023 is no different. 

This Grey Day partnership with Highsnobiety and Mediahub sees New Balance turn the global Highsnobiety platform Grey. 

To celebrate Grey Day, Highsnobiety will switch its entire homepage, logo and social handles grey. They will also tell the story about New Balance’s associations with grey and how this remains to this day.

This is the first time Highnobiety has allowed a brand to take over their global platform in such a disruptive way.  This is a testament to the longstanding partnership between the two brands.

Suri Patel, client partner Mediahub X New Balance, said: "The colour Grey shows up through every part of the New Balance brand, be it lifestyle, running or into performance shoes and apparel. This year we are incredibly proud to tell the world what Grey Day stands for with the support of a cultural tastemaker brand that is Highsnobiety, and our clients who enable us to be challenging and bold in the work we do all over the world."

Hendrik Juergens, VP brand energy, Highsnobiety, said: "It's very rare for a brand to almost entirely own a "colorway". New Balance effortlessly claims the "color" grey and can rightfully celebrate Grey Day as their moment to simultaneously honor the brand's past and to point towards its future. Highsnobiety is all about the brands and communities from its cultural surrounding, which develop and stick to their own codes. Grey is significantly New Balance, and we're excited about the grey Grey Day takeover of our channels."