resuede
Herzogenaurach, April 22, 2024
After two-year composting experiment: PUMA makes RE:SUEDE 2.0 sneaker available for sale

Sports company PUMA will make a commercial version of its experimental RE:SUEDE sneaker, the RE:SUEDE 2.0, available for sale. PUMA showed it was able to successfully turn the RE:SUEDE into compost under tailor-made industrial conditions during a two-year pilot project. 

As part of the experiment, which was successfully concluded in late 2023, PUMA produced 500 special pairs of its iconic Suede sneaker with materials selected for their ability to decompose, such as Zeology tanned Suede. Volunteers wore the RE:SUEDE for half a year before they returned them to PUMA, so the sneakers could be turned into compost at PUMA’s composting partner in a specially equipped industrial composting set up.

PUMA will now make 500 pairs of the commercial version of this shoe, the RE:SUEDE 2.0, available for sale on puma.com/eu and Zalando Plus starting April 22. The commercial version has been developed to incorporate the lessons learned during the experiment and the feedback received from the volunteers.

“RE:SUEDE 2.0 is an important step towards finding viable end of life solutions for our footwear,” said Anne-Laure Descours, PUMA Chief Sourcing Officer. “While we are excited about this progress, we will continue to innovate with our partners to determine the infrastructure needed for a scalable long-term solution, essential for achieving meaningful impact in waste reduction.”

Once the RE:SUEDE 2.0s are worn out, customers can return them for free. PUMA will then send the sneakers to its partners so they can be put through a specially equipped industrial composting process. In exchange for sending them back, customers will receive a 20% discount on their next purchase.

The RE:SUEDE project and the novel polyester recycling programme RE:FIBRE were created as part of PUMA’s “Circular Lab”, an innovation hub led by PUMA’s innovation and design experts aimed at creating the future of the company’s circularity programmes. Rethinking the way PUMA produces and moving towards a more circular business model is one of the priorities of the company’s FOREVER. BETTER. sustainability strategy over the coming years.

resuede
Herzogenaurach, 29 November 2023
PUMA RE:SUEDE pilot project turns experimental sneakers into compost

Sports company PUMA showed that it can successfully turn an experimental version of its classic SUEDE sneaker into compost under certain tailor-made industrial conditions, as it announced the results of its two year-long RE:SUEDE experiment

In 2021, PUMA created 500 pairs of the experimental RE:SUEDE, using Zeology tanned suede, a TPE outsole and hemp fibres. The RE:SUEDEs were worn for half a year by volunteers in Germany to test the comfort and durability of the shoes before PUMA sent them to a specially equipped industrial composting area operated by its partner Ortessa Group in the Netherlands.

A special procedure had to be established to turn the shoes into compost. First, they were shredded and mixed with other green household waste and placed into a composting tunnel. They were then sprayed with leaching-water from earlier composting that contains nutrients and naturally heated due to the biological activity and controlled air circulation in the tunnel. After approximately 3.5 months, the materials that were small enough (<10mm) to pass through a sieve were sold as Grade A compost for agricultural use (within the standards of the Netherlands), while the remaining materials were returned to the composting tunnel until they too had broken down to the desired level (<10mm). Ortessa Group adhered to all legal requirements for compost applicable at their facilities in the Netherlands during this process.

“While the RE:SUEDE could not be processed under the standard operating procedures for industrial composting, the shoes did eventually turn into compost,” said Anne-Laure Descours, Chief Sourcing Officer at PUMA. “We will continue to innovate with our partners to determine the infrastructure and technologies needed to make the process viable for a commercial version of the RE:SUEDE, including a takeback scheme, in 2024.”

Transparency is another important pillar of the RE:SUEDE experiment, as PUMA will share its insights in a detailed report, so its peers and other interested stakeholders can learn from the experiment and apply the learnings to their own initiatives.

“We learned a lot during the RE:SUEDE trial and how to streamline our industrial composting process to include items that need longer to turn into compost,” said Marthien van Eersel Manager Materials & Innovations at Ortessa. “While all RE:SUEDE materials can decompose, the sole of the RE:SUEDE required more pre-processing and additional time in the composting tunnel to completely break down.”

As a result of the feedback received from the people who wore the RE:SUEDE for half a year, PUMA will improve the comfort of future versions of the shoes by enhancing the overall fit by using a new material pattern for the upper and the sock liner.

The RE:SUEDE experiment was the first programme, together with the novel polyester recycling programme RE:FIBRE, to launch as part of PUMA’s “Circular Lab”, an innovation hub led by PUMA’s innovation and design experts with the aim to create the future of the company’s circularity programmes. 
 

Herzogenaurach, Germany, November 4, 2021
No Time for Waste: PUMA pilots testing for biodegradable RE:SUEDE version of its most iconic sneaker

Sports company PUMA has developed an experimental version of its most iconic sneaker, the SUEDE, to test for a product to make it biodegradable. By doing so, PUMA aims to meet the growing demand for sustainable products for a better future. The RE:SUEDE, which uses the latest technology available today, will be made from more sustainable materials such as Zeology tanned suede, biodegradable TPE and hemp fibres.

Puma

The RE:SUEDE experiment is a pilot in circularity, and today’s ultimate expression of the next generation SUEDE – with the ambition to set new standards of sustainability for the iconic shoe. Designed to help address the challenge of waste management in the footwear industry, the RE:SUEDE experiment will allow PUMA to take more responsibility when it comes to tackling the ‘after life’ of its products.  The pilot will launch in 2022, offering 500 selected participants in Germany the chance to join PUMA on its experimental journey towards circularity.

In partnership with PUMA, participants will wear their RE:SUEDEs for six months to test out the durability of a product using biodegradable materials in real life, before sending them back to PUMA via a take back infrastructure, designed to move the products to the next step in the experiment. The sneakers will then be subject to an industrial biodegradation process in a controlled environment at Valor Compostering B.V., owned by Ortessa Groep B.V., a family-run business of waste specialists in the Netherlands. The goal of this step is to determine if Grade A compost can be produced for agricultural use. The findings will help PUMA assess the biodegradable process and unpick essential research and development for the future of sustainable shoe consumption.

The RE:SUEDE experiment is the first circular programme to launch under PUMA’s “Circular Lab” – a new innovation hub, which is led by PUMA’s sustainability and design experts who work to develop the future of the company’s circularity programmes.

This pilot is a recharged, refreshed experiment in circularity, following PUMA’s exploration in the space in 2012, which saw the brand’s first attempt to create a biodegradable sneaker as part of its InCycle collection. Yet after four seasons, the sneaker was discontinued due to low demand and the need for further research and development.

Since 2012, PUMA’s innovation department has worked to address the technological limitations of the InCycle collection in order to apply such learnings into the RE:SUEDE experiment. Improvements include the use of new, innovative materials such as Zeology suede, which is made using a more sustainable tanning process and ensures better comfort for the wearer, when compared to other biodegradable materials evaluated at PUMA. The outsole of the RE:SUEDE has also been improved to ensure optimal wear.

“In 2012, our circular ambition was bold but the technology wasn’t quite there. As they say, with every challenge there’s an opportunity - and we’ve continued to push ourselves to do better by applying our strengths as well as acknowledging and improving on our weaknesses,” said Heiko Desens, PUMA’s Creative Director. “We hope that progress made during the RE:SUEDE experiment: ‘No Time For Waste‘ will help us continue to raise the bar in circularity testing – enabling our consumers to make better fashion choices in the future, so their sneakers can go ‘from Suede to Soil’, without compromising on product style or durability during ownership.”

Puma

About the partnership with Ortessa, Desens further comments: “We’re excited to partner with the experts at Ortessa, who share our passion in developing proactive and pragmatic solutions to the industry‘s waste problem. Their expertise is fundamental in helping us learn more about the after life of the RE:SUEDE, so we can continue moving forwards on our exploration of circularity.“

Rob Meulendijks, CEO of Ortessa comments: “As a family owned challenger in the waste industry, we pride ourselves in creating surprising innovations and fresh concepts to tackle real waste issues in a different and open way. There is a lot more we can all be doing to help tackle waste management, but taking on that challenge alone can be a difficult task for any brand. We are delighted to be working in partnership with PUMA on this special project, where we can apply our deep knowledge and insights on waste, use tried and controlled methods, to assess the biodegradability of the future, next-generation SUEDE.“

PUMA aims to share the results and insights gained from this experiment within the industry to achieve an even bigger impact when it comes to addressing the challenge of waste management in the footwear industry in general. Circularity is one of the pillars of PUMA’s FOREVER BETTER sustainability strategy. By 2025, PUMA aims to reduce waste by increasing the level of recycled polyester in its products to 75%, setting up product takeback schemes in its major markets and developing recycled material options for leather, rubber, cotton and polyurethane.

Since its first iteration in 1968, the PUMA SUEDE has been at the forefront of cultural turning points, transcending style and trends. With the RE:SUEDE, PUMA wants to give its consumers a stylish and more sustainable choice, while showcasing the latest technologies.

Herzogenaurach, Germany, March 3, 2022
PUMA recruits 500 testers for next phase of RE:SUEDE project

Sports company PUMA is looking for 500 people in Germany to join brand ambassadors such as Cara Delevingne and Raphaël Varane to test the RE:SUEDE sneaker and become a part of the company’s experiment to see whether it can make a biodegradable version of its classic SUEDE.

With the RE:SUEDE project, PUMA has the ambition to set new standards of sustainability for the iconic SUEDE, as it tests whether the sneaker can biodegrade in the controlled setting of an industrial composting facility. In May, 500 participants will receive a pair of RE:SUEDEs to test. They are expected to wear the sneaker for six months and then send it back to PUMA. To thank them for their participation in the project, they will receive a new pair of RE:SUEDEs.

“We want participants to wear the RE:SUEDE as part of their daily routine,” said Stefan Seidel, PUMA’s Head of Corporate Sustainability. “That is how we can gather realistic feedback about the durability of the materials used in the sneaker.”

German residents looking to join the experiment can register on PUMA’s website https://eu.puma.com/de/en/resuede by March 14. PUMA will then draw 500 people, who will receive the RE:SUEDE and wear it for half a year before sending it back to PUMA.

The returned RE:SUEDEs will be tested for biodegradability at an industrial composting facility operated by Dutch waste specialists Ortessa. PUMA will share the results of the RE:SUEDE experiment with its industry peers, to find better solutions for the waste management challenges the whole industry faces.

Even though the RE:SUEDE looks like its predecessor, which has been one of PUMA’s most iconic models since the 1960s, biodegradability has been the main focus of the RE:SUEDE program.

This is reflected in the choice of materials, such as Zeology tanned suede, biodegradable TPE and hemp fibres.

Herzogenaurach, Germany, April 21, 2022
Wear, return, biodegrade: PUMA RE:SUEDE Experiment starts with distribution of 500 pairs
Sports company PUMA has started to distribute 500 pairs of its experimental RE:SUEDE sneaker to participants in Germany after recording strong interest for this biodegradability project.

With the RE:SUEDE experiment, PUMA will test whether it can make a biodegradable version of its most iconic shoe, the SUEDE. The participants will wear the RE:SUEDE for half a year before returning their pairs to PUMA. The company will then send the worn RE:SUEDES to industrial composting experts Ortessa in the Netherlands, who will analyze whether the sneakers can biodegrade in a controlled, industrial setting.

“We are excited that we received many times more requests for the RE:SUEDE experiment than we had pairs available, which shows that there is a large interest in sustainability topics,” said Heiko Desens, Global Creative Director at PUMA. “As part of the experiment, we will also gather feedback from participants about the comfort and durability of the sneakers, which will help us design future versions of the shoe, if the experiment is successful.”

PUMA’s global brand ambassadors, such as model, actress and activist Cara Delevingne, will also test the RE:SUEDE as part of this project.

The RE:SUEDE is made with materials such as Zeology tanned suede, biodegradable TPE and hemp fibers. Compared to other biodegradable materials that were evaluated by PUMA, these materials also ensure better comfort for the wearer.

The RE:SUEDE experiment is the first project to launch as part of PUMA’s “Circular Lab”, an innovation hub, which brings together PUMA’s sustainability and design experts who work on circularity programs. The recently announced RE:JERSEY project, in which PUMA pilots an innovative garment-to-garment recycling process, is also a part of “Circular Lab”.

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