ASICS launched the new recycling-oriented running shoe “NIMBUS MIRAI2,” but only 60 used shoes were collected, leaving challenges to the realization of a circular economy. While the shoe’s design has been progressively improved with the circular economy in mind since the first generation, measures intended to facilitate disassembly and reuse have their limits.
ASICS, a major sporting goods company, launched the new running shoe “NIMBUS MIRAI2 (Nimbus Mirai2),” designed to improve recyclability. While the shoe offers improved functionality and environmental performance over the first generation, the insufficient collection of used shoes has been identified as an issue.
The first generation was designed around the circulation of resources, using a structure that made it easier to separate the upper from the sole. The upper was formed from a single polyester material without metal, and an adhesive that could be more easily broken down with heat was selected, among other measures intended to facilitate reuse.
The article explains, as background to this initiative, that shoes consist of multiple materials and are difficult to disassemble, while many are currently discarded as general waste.
It cites 15 October as the second launch date, indicating that the new product is part of an ongoing effort to achieve a circular economy. The article’s key point is developed from both sides of the issue: improvements in recyclability and the gap between those improvements and actual collection results.
Attention will focus on how efforts to promote collection and further improve the design progress in the future.