Adidas and Allbirds, just like their shoes, are better as a pair. The two footwear companies partnered up to create a running shoe with their lowest carbon footprint yet: FUTURECRAFT.FOOTPRINT.
The sharing of resources allowed both companies to hit personal records with a shoe that emits 2.94kg of carbon/pair without sacrificing quality. That is 63 percent fewer emissions with the same high performance. The companies analyzed their current practices and in less than a year they changed their materials, packaging, and manufacturing processes. FUTURECRAFT.FOOTPRINT marks the first launch in their joint mission to design the first running shoe with no carbon footprint.
“We believe that the challenge of solving climate change is the problem of our generation and solving it will not be done alone. We need to find new business models, innovations, and new ways of working together,” said Tim Brown, Co-founder, and Co-CEO of Allbirds.
Like maple syrup and bacon, Adidas and Allbirds each brought their unique flavour to the table. To make this release happen, Adidas came with a firm handle on sportswear and manufacturing, and Allbirds with the know-how on natural materials and carbon calculation.
The FUTURECRAFT.FOOTPRINT combines Adidas’ Lightstrike midsole and performance standards with Allbirds Sugarcane-based material SweetFoam. Fun to run on, not to eat.
“Both the upper and the outside construction are inspired by the Tangram Principle, with all individual parts in their entirety achieving as little scrap as possible in production to reduce waste,” said Jamie McLellan, Head of Design at Allbirds.
The streamlined sneakers are just the first step in the right direction. Recently, Adidas committed to reducing its carbon footprint by 30 percent in the next nine years and being carbon neutral by 2050. Allbirds. as a Public Benefit Corporation, has been focused on reducing the use of petroleum-based materials from the start. They recently self-imposed a carbon tax to keep themselves 100% carbon neutral. The race against climate change is a tight one and Allbirds and Adidas are determined to pick up the pace.
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“This is a call-to-action for other brands, and a milestone in the sports industry achieving carbon neutrality,” said Brian Grevy, Executive Board Member at Adidas.
The prototype of FUTURECRAFT.FOOTPRINT launches in May as part of a raffle for members of Adidas’ Creators Club. The wide release will be in Fall/Winter 2021.
