Concepts x New Balance "City Rivalry" Pack NYC Launch Recap

Ahead of the Saturday and Monday releases, Concepts celebrated its newly unveiled collaboration with New Balance at the first of two parties this past Sunday.

The “City Rivalry” Pack draws inspiration from MLB’s longest running rivalry between the Yankees and the Red Sox, as well as the two cities Concepts calls home, New York and Boston.

Serving as a celebratory finale to a project that has taken two years to complete, New York’s launch party took place at the swanky W Hotel in Times Square. It was a laid-back occasion, the preferred atmosphere for Concepts’ jack of all trades Deon Point, with home run derby challenges on a PS4, smooth sounds from DJ Envy, great cocktails, rare sneakers, and Supreme flannels (we see you Russ Bengtson in Slide 8). If you’re going to be in Times Square on a Sunday night, this wasn’t a bad place to be.

We chatted with Deon for quite some time, and although he was handing out daps left and right, he remained attentive and polite to our conversation. He talked about the barriers of opening shop in New York and being respectful of the city as a newcomer, his collaborative process, from narrowing his focus with themes to his lack of Photoshop skills, and even his industry rivals that inspire him to elevate his work, akin to the Yanks and Sox. But he was most excited to talk about Concepts Dubai, the brand’s first international flagship, set to open sometime this fall. Although enthralled in the lavishness of the city when recalling his visits to the desert metropolis, it was the prospect of introducing Dubai to American street culture that got Deon charged up. And we couldn’t be more stoked either. It’s safe to say Concepts has a lot planned for this year, including another pack that pays homage to the Big Apple and Beantown, so stay tuned!

With the Teal Yankees model of the New Balance “City Rivalry” Pack slated to drop this Saturday, April 9 at Concepts New York, the retailer will host its second party at the W Hotel in Boston that same night, with special room packages that come with the exclusive sneakers available here. The Red Sox version of the pack will release at Concepts Boston on April 11, while each sneaker will release at cncptsintl.com on April 11 and 16 respectively.