Puma’s journey towards more sustainable footwear

Puma’s journey towards more sustainable shoes

With the scourge of fast fashion becoming increasingly apparent in recent decades, we will take a look at one of the giants of the footwear and sportswear industry – the German company “PUMA”, which is diligently seeking to applysustainability concepts in its operations and products.

For Puma, the process of becoming a more sustainable company is an ongoing journey that includes all stages of its business; So the German company launched its own sustainability strategy, which it called: “Forever Better.”

Ambitious goals and encouraging results

Puma made sustainability an important part of its strategy many years ago, when it introduced its first code of conduct in 1993, but the global landscape has changed a lot since then. Today, more than ever; Consumers and retailers expect companies to be a major part of the solution to confronting the world’s environmental challenges, through more initiatives, adopting sustainable products, in addition to adopting the principle of “separating consumption from carbon emissions.” That is, meaning that the increase in consumption rates is not linked to the increase in the amount of emissions.

PUMA realizes that it cannot become more sustainable by focusing only on a few of its products, as it recognizes that it must have an impact on a broader scale; To achieve this, the German company has set goals through 10 target areas, such as climate change, circular economy, plastics, and others. The company seeks to achieve these goals by 2025.

PUMA – as a member of the “Fashion Charter for Climate Action” – wants to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and this is in light of reports and research that warn of certain catastrophe if we do not seriously participate in reducing the consequences of climate change.

In this context, the German company revealed some data between 2017 and 2021, indicating that PUMA has reduced its carbon emissions around the world (in offices, stores, and warehouses) by 88%, and this is by switching to renewable energy, and purchasing renewable energy certificates, in addition to converting its car fleet to electric vehicles.

Despite its strong growth between 2017 and 2021, PUMA has also managed to reduce carbon emissions from its supply chain. The company achieved this by helping its suppliers obtain more renewable energy and rely more on the use of more sustainable materials. Hence, smaller amounts of carbon emissions.

RecyclingAs a main method

Recycling is crucial, as it enables more sustainable choices to be made on a large scale. In 2021, PUMA expanded the use of recycled polyester to 55% in its clothing products, as part of its strategy to use 75% recycled polyester in clothing and accessories by 2025. It is also on track to replace plastic shopping bags in all its outlets.

By 2025, PUMA aims to have more sustainable ingredients in 90% of its shoes. This includes developing recycled options in leather, rubber and polyurethane (faux leather). The first reused leather material was already introduced in one of the company’s shoe collections in 2021, which it called “RE.GEN”.

But sustainability is not only about manufacturing new products. With the projects: “RE:SUEDE” and “RE:JERSEY”, Puma began two important experiments to explore ways; To bear more responsibility towards achieving sustainable development. Through the first project, Puma made a trial version of a classic sneaker with special materials, such as biodegradable thermoplastic elastomer (TBE) and chrome-free leather. It distributed the shoes to 500 volunteers in Germany, who wore them for six months before returning them to the company, to evaluate the quality of the product.

In the second project, Puma experimented with a chemical recycling process to transform old polyester shirts into new products. Through this process, the German company can separate colors and impurities from the used shirts. To create recycled polyester yarns with the same performance properties as virgin polyester, which encouraged the company to increase reliance on chemical recycling in its future plan.

Because of these efforts, Puma has been ranked as the most sustainable brand in the fashion industry, according to “Business of Fashion,” which is called BOF for short, and the ranking included the 30 largest companies in the fashion field. For those who do not know, BOF is an institution known throughout the world for its reliable analytical reports on the global fashion industry, an industry worth $2.5 trillion.

Puma is proud of the progress it has made in terms of sustainability over the past decades. However, the company is well aware that there is still a lot to be done; To become more sustainable, and to be “better forever.”