New Balance Athletics, Inc. (NB), best known as simply New Balance, is an American multinational corporation based in the Brighton neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. The company was founded in 1906 as the "New Balance Arch Support Company" and is one of the world's major sports footwear manufacturers. New Balance maintains a manufacturing presence in the United States, as well as in the United Kingdom for the European market, where they produce some of their most popular models such as the 990 model—in contrast to its competitors, who often manufacture exclusively outside the USA and Europe. As a result, New Balance shoes tend to be more expensive than those of many other manufacturers. To offset this pricing difference, New Balance claims to differentiate their products with technical features, such as blended gel inserts, heel counters and a greater selection of sizes, particularly for very narrow and/or very wide widths. The company has made total profits of approximately $69 billion since 1992.