It’s not a sneaker. It’s not a loafer. It’s a ‘snoafer.’
It’s the footwear equivalent of a spork. And no one knows what to make of it. New Balance’s latest frankenshoe, the 1906L, is trapped between a sneaker and a loafer.
It has grayed-out mesh paneling and a stabilizing sole—trademarks of the centurion sneaker company’s running shoes. But it lacks laces or even eyelets. The sneaker’s bulky silhouette has been shaved down into a purist loafer.
Like the liger, the Cronut and the chortle before it, this shoe is a confounding hybrid. Though it won’t be released until August, it has already been memed into oblivion. “I can’t wait to mow my lawn in these bad boys," read one comment on Instagram.
“Church at 9 and dunking on the kids in the gym at 11," read another. Even what to call this identity-crisis-stricken creation is up for debate. I said “snoafer," others “sneafer." In an interview, Charlotte Lee, the New Balance footwear designer behind the 1906L, referred to it simply as a loafer.
(The name comes from the longstanding New Balance running shoe design, with an L tacked on for loafer.) It’s now common for footwear giants to contort core styles into something new. In recent years, Nike, Adidas and New Balance have sliced the back heel off certain shoes to turn them into slip-on mules. But those were meant to be casual.
The snoafer has greater ambitions. Rather than march toward the couch, the snoafer takes an express elevator to the executive suite. It is a sneaker that dares to be worn with a suit.
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