Sportswear brand Nike has developed a new range of footwear that makes use of recycled content and scrap material, reaffirming a commitment to its Move to Zero philosophy.

Its Space Hippie shoes are made in-line with circular design principles and are said to “attack the villain of trash,” according to Nike’s chief design officer, John Hoke.

“It's changed the way we look at materials, it's changed the way that we look at the aesthetics of our product. It's changed how we approach putting product together,” he said.

With a name said to reflect a more resourceful approach to design – as one would be tasked with in space – the Space Hippie is just one example of Nike’s strategy to make better use of materials to combat waste.

Only recently the company has developed a Move to Zero capsule collection – comprising garments made from sustainable cotton and recycled polyester, and manufactured with fewer chemicals – and released its new Atsuma trainers which are said to reduce waste in footwear production through the clever use of layered or inverted material.

For its Space Hippie shoes, Nike once again adopts a more thought-out approach, integrating recycled content from water bottles, t-shirts and yarn scraps within the shoe upper to ensure 90 per cent of it is recycled by weight.

In a thin foam layer, the footwear makes use of factory scraps from the production of its Vaporfly, whilst also reprocessing its ZoomX foam to halve the CO₂ that would otherwise be emitted during this stage.

Finally, its crater foam comprises a blend of standard Nike foams and 15 per cent Nike Grind rubber. Again, the firm points to the associated carbon reduction reducing virgin material usage can provide.

“We believe the future for product will be circular,” said Seana Hannah, Nike’s VP of sustainable innovation. “We must think about the entire process: how we design it, how we make it, how we use it, how we reuse it and how we cut out waste at every step. These are the fundamentals of a circular mindset that inform best practices.”

Source: EcoTextile News