Sustainability at Kickers

Writer and expert3 years ago

We’re experts in creating footwear that’s both durable and showcases your personality, however we still have a lot to learn when it comes to sustainability. Our promise to you is that we are on the right track and doing work behind the scenes to reduce our impact on the environment. We also want to make this as transparent as possible, that’s why on every product page you can find the sustainability elements specific to that product.

We wanted to share what we’ve been working on lately:

2020: Reimagining our classics

We re-engineered all our shoe ranges to establish a foundational level of sustainability.
We switched ALL our laces to Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) versions.
Our shoeboxes are FSC certified, using 90% recycled material and natural soya ink. All our shoe boxes are 100% recyclable.
All our leathers come from gold standard Leather Working Group certified tanneries.
We switched to 100% recycled PET linings in our styles that are lined.
Our classic black Kick soles are now made up of 20% recycled content. This helps us to maintain the durability we are known and loved for whilst using less raw materials.
Orders placed from Kickers.co.uk use packaging that is FSC certified and made from 80% post-consumer waste. All packaging is 100% recyclable.
Reimagining our classics led to us winning the 2020 Drapers sustainability award and the start of our long-term sustainability strategy.

2021: Supporting People and researching new materials

In May 2021 we launched a 100% Vegan, organic plant-dyed collaboration with our friends at Lucy & Yak. This used recycled rubber in the soles and organic cotton uppers. This collaboration helped us to work with new suppliers and research environmentally friendly materials, the pink colour was made from naturally dyed Rhubarb!
In November 2021 we introduce two new adult Kizziie styles to the range made from organic cotton textile uppers which are 100% Vegan (including the glues). These will be available in unisex sizing from an adult UK 3 – 12.
Our partnership with Magic Breakfast saw us donate 30,000 breakfasts to kids across the UK.
We worked with our friends at show Racism the Red Card to encourage 600+ Schools to take part in their national anti-racism fundraising day: Wear Red Day
We continued the anti-racism education internally by working with Show Racism the Red Card to provide all of our HQ colleagues with anti-racism education.
We have worked with our factory partners to mitigate the impacts caused by the pandemic such as ensuring we paid for all orders, supported them with payment timeframes and provided care packages during local lockdowns.

2022: Reducing our impact with meaning

In Q2 of 2022 we will launch a 100% Vegan range, made up of our most-loved styles.
In June 2022 we will publish our first Sustainability report which will establish a formalised process of measuring our impact on the environment and give greater transparency to the great work we are doing behind the scenes.
We know the fashion industry is one of the most negatively impactful to the environment, so to help offset our carbon footprint we will be planting a Mangrove Tree for every pair of shoes sold.
All of our in-store marketing material will be made from recycled content and fully recyclable.
We will continue to donate to our charity partners and help them raise awareness of key societal issues.

These changes are only the start of our journey, with many more to come. Please regularly check back on our blog for the latest updates.

Pentland brands holds the UK license for Kickers footwear and apparel, If you want to learn even more about our best practices and supply chain, you can read our most recent Positive Business report. As well as this, Pentland has recently announced their ‘100-1-0′ positive business strategy, setting out three major targets to be reached by 2032: