New York (AFP)
Nike will no longer sell only brand new shoes: to reduce waste, the sports equipment manufacturer is now also planning to sell pairs of sneakers and tennis shoes already worn or with small manufacturing defects.
This new service, called Nike Refurbished, is already available in a few stores in the United States and will be available "soon" in 15 establishments in total.
The group, which presents this initiative as an example of a circular economy, plans to expand it later.
The idea is to collect shoes returned by customers within sixty days of purchase, inspect them and, for those that are still salable, brush and sanitize them by hand.
Three categories are foreseen: "like new" for the shoes having been worn a day or two, "slightly used" for those used a little longer and "with a small cosmetic defect" for those having suffered from a tear during the manufacturing as a task or a mark.
A message on the box will easily identify the category, on which the price offered in stores will depend.
Shoes returned but considered too used are either donated to charities or crushed for recycling, says Nike.
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