The 990’s original designers were tasked with creating the single best running shoe on the market. After four years of research and development, the finished product more than lived up to its billing. When it hit shelves for the first time in 1982 the 990 sported an elegantly understated grey colorway, and a then unheard of three-figure price tag.
For avid runners and ahead of the curve tastemakers alike, the 990 was a mark of quality and superior taste. There have been updates to the design since ’82, and more colour options, but the 990’s aspirational status symbol aura has never changed. Simply put, the 990 is the shoe so good, that they've never stopped making it.
This may not be the “on trend” 990 right now but it is without question the most important. First pig suede upper, first grey NB, first use of 3M reflective, first moulded C/R component, first dual density midsole... the list goes on. It also boasted a new Vibram compound and famously retailed at twice the price of any other competitor model (then unheard of three-figure price tag).
