Karimoku New Standard and ASICS create furniture made from crushed trainers

Furniture brand Karimoku New Standard has announced the global release of its KNS x ASICS Collaboration, which repurposes upcycled foam from unused ASICS trainers as cushioning for two seating designs.

The KNS x ASICS Collaboration uses deadstock and sample footwear from ASICS that would have otherwise been discarded.

Karimoku New Standard, a sub-brand of Japanese manufacturer Karimoku, used the same technique that ASICS has utilised for its upcycled Neocurve trainers to create the material for the collaboration.

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The ASICS footwear is dismantled, sorted and crushed to extract Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA) foam, a flexible, light material commonly used as cushioning for midsoles, outsoles and footbeds.

After the foam has been extracted, it is blended with cotton and paired with a three-millimetre condensed foam sheet to create a hybrid structure, according to Karimoku New Standard.

The material is then used as cushioning in the brand’s Castor Lobby Sofa and Polar Lounge Chair, which also feature an embroidered tag as a symbol of the collaboration.

The KNS x ASICS Collaboration, which was introduced in Japan earlier this year before the recent global launch, came about after Karimoku New Standard was working on seating for the meeting spaces in ASICS’ Tokyo office.

“Through rigorous sessions with ASICS – leveraging their expertise in sports science – and a meticulous adjustment process for real-world office use, Karimoku repeatedly prototyped to transform an unfamiliar material like shoe waste into true furniture comfort,” Karimoku New Standard said.

“This uncompromising, hands-on exploration led to the creation of the innovative hybrid structure,” the brand continued.

“Beyond merely reusing materials from a sustainability standpoint, it turns them into a functional added value.”