As Earth Day approaches, Nike has announced a new initiative that helps keep their sneakers out of landfills. The sneaker manufacturer is expanding on their idea of refurbishing lightly worn shoes that have been returned or have small manufacturing flaws. They're cleaning them up, sanitizing them and putting them back on the shelf for sale at a discount at various locations around the United States.
Right now there are eight stores selling these used Nikes, and they say that number will increase to 15 locations by the end of April. Now, they're not just accepting any ratty old, used shoes. In order to qualify for resale, the sneakers had to have been returned to a Nike store within 60 days of purchase.
This is all part of Nike's plan to reduce their carbon footprint. They're attempting to reduce waste by refurbishing, recycling and donating as much product as possible, and they have also pledged a 70% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2025.
Photo Credit: Getty Images / Bradley Kanaris