Delevingne and the other 499 participants in the pilot will wear RE:SUEDE for six months and then send the sneakers back to PUMA for assessment and composting in an industrial unit operated by the Netherlands’ Ortessa. The resulting material will then be assessed for suitability in agricultural applications.
“Proud to be working with @puma on a journey that ties with my passion for the planet,” Delevingne said in an Instagram post announcing her participation.
RE:SUEDE materials include tanned suede, biodegradable thermoplastic elastomers and hemp.
The sneaker applies learnings from InCycle, a biodegradable shoe PUMA launched in 2012 but discontinued due to weak demand. “In 2012, our circular ambition was bold but the technology wasn’t quite there,” Heiko Desens, PUMA’s Creative Director, said back in November 2021, when the RE:SUEDE pilot was first announced. “As they say, with every challenge there’s an opportunity—and we’ve continued to push ourselves to do better by applying our strengths as well as acknowledging and improving on our weaknesses.”