Dear Mr. Rørsted,
I’m a student recently working on a school report about analyzing Adidas Sustainability Policies. I am really impressed by the efforts Adidas has put in and truly feel that Adidas value sustainability a lot. However, I have found from previous years’ reports that Adidas only set 9 take-back stations in Adidas stores through the Western Europe and the United States. Contrast with more than 2,500 direct sales worldwide, plus 13,000 single-brand dealers and online sales platforms, selling more than 300 million pairs of shoes a year, 9 take-back stores don’t seem enough to achieve the circular economy Adidas has aimed.
Even if Adidas plans to expand this project in the future, the ultimate goal is to be able to recycle all the old shoes that are sold, that means stores need to receive and handle old shoes that are equal in quantity to sales. It is impossible to complete those tasks with the spatial design and manpower in store now. Therefore, I suggest while enlarging the take-back program, Adidas should launch a new service that allows people to mail old shoes directly to the Adidas Distribution Center. And here are three reasons why this is a feasible and must-do idea.
First, E-commerce has gradually become the mainstream. In 2017, Adidas online revenue increased by 57% to nearly 1.6 billion euros. Mr. Rorsted, you also said that the reduction of physical stores is to boost profitability. So, I believe that Adidas can take advantage of the online shopping and return habits of customers and apply the original return process to collect worn shoes.
Second, this is a low-cost and effective mechanism. Since the current contract with UPS already includes a return policy, the return cost per pair won’t be a burden. The only change Adidas has to make to operate this plan is to attach a return box barcode to each new shoe box. With the return box barcode, customers can easily pack a pair of old shoes and send them out by following the return procedure. Recycled a pair of old shoes, while selling a pair of new shoes; this mechanism can not only effectively collect worn shoes, but also recycle the shoe boxes as well!
Last, Adidas’s mission is to be the best sports company in the world. When the world needs someone to stand up for it, why not Adidas? As the Parley project has a great impact on society, this new take-back system will spread the concept of circular economy worldwide. It is a chance to educate customers, raise awareness of sustainability in the world, be responsible of what Adidas has produced, and be the pioneer of the industry. Furthermore, a sustainability research from Ioannis Ioannou, associate professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at London Business School, indicates that customers have higher brand loyalty toward sustainability companies. Which means this new take-back system will not only do good to the environment, but also bring more customer support and revenue.
I wrote this letter because what you said in the 2016 Adidas Sustainability Progress Report deeply touched me. “Based on our passion for sport, we want to be the guardians of these spaces of sport, and we aim to protect these spaces that have a direct link to our business: we want to protect spaces where sport is made, sold and played.” This passage made me believe that Adidas’s sustainability policy does not appears to be no reason but implements the company’s value and reflects on its customer-oriented products.
As a customer and a fan of Adidas, I am very much looking forward to Adidas follow-up performance. I hope that you can consider my suggestion about recycling sold out shoes through mailing system. Expect Adidas to be the model of the sportswear industry and realize the future of economic and environmental balance in the near future.
