White shoes for trail running? What was Adidas thinking? At first glance, you really wonder how they came up with the idea of designing sports shoes for outdoor running in white. Messe.TV presenter Jürgen Groh wanted to know the idea behind it and visited Adidas at Outdoor 2017 in Friedrichshafen.
Jürgen Groh: I see that Adidas is also very present on the outdoor market, as the stand impressively demonstrates. Here we are standing in front of a row of white shoes, what can they do? Jasmin Frank: The white shoes are very special! You might think that white shoes are crazy and that's in trail running! But they have a specific story. All the white materials in the shoes are zero dye, which means the materials are not dyed and so we use fewer resources and play an environmentally friendly story with these shoes. Jürgen Groh: How did this idea come about? Jasmin Frank: Environmental friendliness is present throughout our company. We wanted to emphasize this more clearly and asked ourselves how we could best show this. The result was white shoes, a part that we implement in an environmentally friendly way. Jürgen Groh: Is the non-dyeing the only environmentally friendly aspect of the shoes or is there more? Jasmin Frank: We use recycled materials. The black dots in the sole are 10% recycled, which means we have 10% EVA recycled in the shoes. Jürgen Groh: What is EVA? Jasmin Frank: EVA is this midsole.
Jürgen Groh: Where does it come from when it is recycled? Where was it originally? Jasmin Frank: They are remnants that are recycled. Jürgen Groh: I saw Continental on the sole. Are these old mountain bike or car tires? Jasmin Frank: No, at Continental you have to say that we have high-performance shoes, which means it's important to us that athletes and consumers actually use the shoes for trail running. So the sole is a real rubber from Continental and not recycled rubber to ensure the best performance, you can't neglect the performance aspect. Jürgen Groh: But this tread here has something to do with tires? Jasmin Frank: That's right. Each of our trail running shoes has a different tread pattern. The outsole profile of all our shoes refers to a mountain bike tire, which is in the same area of use. The Baron shoe is derived from Baron, which means it is an enduro shoe that is used for racing.
Jürgen Groh: These shoes are made for outdoor use and are completely white! Every housewife would say "oh my God, they catch dirt without end" to them. What about your shoes? Jasmin Frank: Yes, that's right and that's what we want. We want every consumer to show, play and tell their own story with the trail running shoes. Someone who runs around in the mud will of course tell a different story than someone who runs in the grass or on dry terrain, so everyone tells their own individual story. Jürgen Groh: Then even the pure office worker would be exposed, because they would stay white. Jasmin Frank: Yes, if you look at it that way, yes, exactly. Jürgen Groh: When will the collection be launched? Jasmin Frank: The Zero Dye collection, the package comes out in April 2018. Jürgen Groh: Then I wish you every success with it!