adidas is expanding its sustainability efforts with a new resale program powered by ThredUP’s resale-as-as-service (RaaS) program. The Adidas Choose to Give Back program will accept used goods from any brand or category, including sports equipment, to be reused or resold, with a focus on sports performance, lifestyle apparel and footwear.
The brand initially launched the program through the Creators Club app, part of its membership program, on Oct. 7. Choose to Give Back will roll out more widely online and in stores in early 2022. To participate, consumers can generate a prepaid “Clean Out Kit” shipping label through the app, using it to send in goods for reuse or resale in return for Creators Club rewards. If an item is not in a condition to be resold, it will go through thredUP’s network of textile reuse partners.
“We believe that great performance shouldn’t come at the cost of the environment,” said Katja Schreiber, SVP of Sustainability at adidas in a statement. “That’s why we’re committed to establishing a circular future for sportswear, and with the Choose to Give Back program we are helping people to see new possibilities to give old gear new life.”
Choose to Give Back is the latest in a number of adidas sustainability initiatives with the express goal of ending plastic waste, including a low-carbon shoe collaboration with Allbirds; a version of the iconic Stan Smith sneaker made with the underground roots of mushrooms; and a collection created in partnership with Parley for the Oceans made out of upcycled plastic. The brand also is working toward a goal of carbon neutrality across all of its North American facilities by 2025, including retail stores, distribution centers and offices.
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ThredUP is increasingly becoming a facilitator for other retailers’ and brands’ pre-owned operations through its RaaS solution. Other retailers that have teamed up with ThredUP include Farfetch, Walmart and Gap. The company also recently partnered with Madewell for a new physical retail pop-up in Brooklyn, N.Y., featuring secondhand Madewell pieces and designed to educate shoppers about why clothes should be made to last. ThredUP’s own resale operation has seen such high demand that the company recently announced plans for a new 600,000-square-foot distribution center in Texas that can handle 10 million items.
