News

May 08, 2024

Nike: Making strides towards net zero with sustainable foam

Founded in 1964, American lifestyle brand Nike is a global household name with nearly 80,000 employees and US$50.6bn revenue in 2023. The company’s public facing brand stays fresh and stylish through

Founded in 1964, American lifestyle brand Nike is a global household name with nearly 80,000 employees and US$50.6bn revenue in 2023.

The company’s public facing brand stays fresh and stylish through a combination of partnerships and fresh perspective working in collaboration with classic, staple designs like Converse and Air Force.

Similarly, its attitudes to sustainability are held fast by core principles of reducing impact, whilst creating energetic partnerships with companies including technology partner Cognizant, Avangrid Renewables, Iberdrola and even Roblox and Snapchat.

Nike’s sustainability encompasses multiple areas of the business, including circular solutions which include supporting product care for longer life, promoting recycling of used products, selling refurbished returned shoes as an accessible priced and sustainable reuse option, and re-creating pieces from vintage and dead stock products.

The company is working towards its targets:

More than 70% of any Nike product’s carbon footprint comes from materials, so it is unsurprising that the company is continuously developing sustainable materials.

Innovative material development includes:

Nike believes in developing sustainable materials that not only support the planet, but are also a better alternative for its customers.

"I'm not going to ask customers to accept sustainability because it's sustainable,” said Eric Sprunk, Nike’s CEO when the Nike Flyleather was launched.

"They're going to say, 'This is better'. That's a great win. An ugly shoe designed for sustainability: that's no victory."

The company also imposes voluntary restrictions on chemicals, uses 100% organic, recycled or Better Cotton sourced through the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) as of 2020, and saves an average of one billion plastic bottles from landfills and waterways annually through using recycled polyester.

Nike’s newest development in sustainable material is a new ReactX foam cushioning unit, which is launching soon in the InfinityRN 4. The shoe, which also utilises Nike Flyknit, is designed for road running and is part of a range of Nike shoes designed for long distance comfort and support.

The ReactX Foam reduces the carbon footprint of the midsole by over 43%, and offers improved support and cushioning for the user. The foam is put through an injection process, rather than the compression moulding used previously, which boosts energy return whilst reducing carbon output.

Over the past five years, the material has been researched, developed and tested to ensure progress in both performance and environmental impact.

“We are always looking for ways to improve our products' carbon footprint,” says Noel Kinder, Nike’s Chief Sustainability Officer, regarding the new material launch.

“This is our next step in that sustainability journey.”

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