Made With Pride: Concepts' Deon Point Chats New Balance 997 Collaborations

Born and bred in Boston, Concepts originally opened their doors with a focus on skateboarding, before diversifying into global retail with stores in Dubai, New York, and Shanghai. From intricate packaging concepts to epic events that flip the script on traditional sneaker launches, Concepts is one of the few retailers that continually push the boundaries. At the helm is Deon Point, a New England—native that spent his formative years hassling store clerks for hook-ups long before he became the creative director. As the industry continues to expand exponentially, Deon’s blue-collar attitude and flair for bold design has kept Concepts at the forefront of the game.

The Concepts x New Balance 997 colabs set the bar very high back in 2014. What do you remember about that time?
Hands-down, the 997 is our favourite New Balance of all time. Aside from pure aesthetics, they are one of the most comfortable sneakers ever made. I think a lot of outside factors contributed to the success of those three shoes. The timing was impeccable. The 997s were Made in USA and consumers were looking for something different at that time, which makes sense because the 997 hadn’t been released for a few decades.
Whether it’s the brand matrix we offer, or the collaborations we design and release, Concepts have always remained committed to the idea of luxury, so the conceptual thread between all those 997s was powerful.

This feature was originally published in Sneaker Freaker's New Balance 997 book. For a look at the 997's history, read about its  and our interview with designer, . For a look back at United Arrows' 997.5, read our interview with UA's director, , or delve into the minutiae of the 997 back catalogue with . Of course, we also broke bread with Kith's  to chat about his love for the 997.