Vivobarefoot plans re-commerce site to cut landfill

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Jul 16, 2020

London-based shoe brand Vivobarefoot is combating the issue of old shoes ending up in landfill with the launch of ReVivo, a repair programme.

In a bid to reduce its shoes-to-landfill ratio, the brand said it will work with The Boot Repair Company to recondition worn or returned Vivobarefoot shoes and keep them in circulation.

Returned shoes will undergo a full fault inspection before being given a new lease of life, with improvements including repairing burst seams, patching up torn or weak areas and rebonding unstuck seals and soles.

Other procedures include replacing broken eyelets, damaged laces, insoles and soles, with old inserts being recycled and used to repair other shoes.

All shoes will be given a deep steam clean and sanitised inside and out using Micro-Fresh, a skin-friendly formula, to kill all known viruses and bacteria.

The initiative aims to address the problem of fashion waste. It has been estimated that out of the more than 25 billion pairs of shoes produced every year, 90% end up in landfill. Many are consigned to the rubbish bin less than a year after being purchased.

Once repaired, Vivobarefoot shoes will be clearly marked and available to buy from the ReVivo website. And the brand said in the future, it will incorporate other circular economy models such as 3D-printed shoes and chemical recycling solutions.
 
Vivobarefoot CEO Galahad Clark said: “No doubt, the elephant in the sustainable shoe room is end-of-life and the fact that nearly all shoes end up in landfill or, at best, get ground down into flooring material. The shoe industry makes shoes out of complicated different materials bonded together with a lot of petro-chemicals that will ultimately sit in landfill for a lot longer than the lives of the wearers!”

He added: “At Vivobarefoot we’re on a journey to make the most sustainable shoes in the world: regenerative for people and the planet. The launch of ReVivo is a super exciting step in that journey and one of many initiatives we are taking to make sure none of our shoes ever end up slowly decaying in landfill!”