Keep running shoes out of landfill

SportsShoes.com has partnered with running shoe recycling initiative JogOn and logistics provider Evri to enable customers to donate their unwanted running shoes to keep them out of landfill and in use.

The Shipley-headquartered online retailer has set up a special returns service with its two partners.

For a fixed fee of £2, the service allows customers to send up to six pairs of unwanted running shoes, up to a maximum of 15kg, to JogOn meaning the returns cost can be as little as 33p per pair of shoes.

According to JogOn, around 18 billion running shoes are sold globally each year and approximately 30 million end up in landfill annually. The organisation has set an ambitious goal of keeping one million pairs of used running shoes out of landfill each year.

The donated used shoes are distributed in support of charities, NGOs and micro-economies at 15 destinations around the world.

JogOn founder, Tony Piedade, said: “securing SportsShoes.com and Evri as partners is a real coup for us. Both businesses are committed to delivering sustainability for the benefit of their customers and wider society, so our initiative complements that approach.”

“We are looking forward to working with the teams at SportsShoes.com and Evri as we head towards achieving our target of keeping one million pairs of used running shoes out of landfill each year.”

Earlier this year, SportsShoes.com announced its intention to become the world’s most sustainable running equipment retailer by 2025. Called ‘Leave No Footprints’, the company’s sustainability strategy also includes becoming carbon net-zero in the future.

Managing director, Brett Bannister, added: “JogOn is an excellent initiative, so we are very pleased to be able to start working with Tony and his team. We are very interested in and committed to this end of life scheme for running shoes.

“Our logistics partner Evri is also doing a tremendous job by offering a class-leading, low-cost returns service utilising the company’s low carbon ParcelShop network. Without Evri’s commitment and £2 cost, the barrier for customers to return shoes at their own expense would have been too high.

“We are going to promote this new returns service to our existing and new customers as often as we can, and are confident of it being well received by the SportsShoes.com community.”

Nancy Hobhouse at Evri, said: “We are proud to be supporting this fantastic initiative through our national network of ParcelShops. It fits well with our ambitious ESG strategy as we are pushing sustainability and ethics to the forefront of our operating model. We are committed to delivering a better future for the planet, including our people, our customers and retail partners, and wider communities.”