Asics Corp. has released its 2021 Sustainability Report, which outlines the company’s progress towards medium- and long-term sustainability goals. This was the first year working towards its targets for 2030 and 2050, which were set in 2020. The headline results for 2021, as defined by the company, were a 28 percent reduction in CO2 emissions from its direct operations and a 19.7 percent reduction across its supply chain, both compared with 2015 baseline levels.
Asics’ sustainability strategy revolves around two main pillars – “People” and “Planet” – each aligned with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In the People pillar, in 2021, the percentage of female managers grew by 1.17 percent and reached 33.7 percent. The company has committed to achieving a ratio of female representation in management and senior positions of at least 35 percent globally by 2023. Asics donated in total nearly US$410,000 in-kind and in community contributions around the world last year. Its staff also participated directly, with 43 employees volunteering in the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 for a total of 1,460 hours.
In the Planet pillar, Asics made significant progress toward switching 100 percent of the polyester it uses from conventional to recycled polyester, achieving more than 30 percent in 2021. The company increased the use of recycled polyester across all product categories. Meanwhile, it continued to work towards its 2025 target to source 100 percent more sustainable cotton. In 2021, more than 50 percent was sourced from more sustainable cotton. The company also used 15 percent less water in 2021 than the previous year.
Overall, 90 percent of its new running shoes in 2021 included recycled material. Asics incorporated textile waste into its products, including the Gel-Nimbus Lite 3, and launched football shoes that feature sustainable materials. Asics’ Earth Day Pack, launched in April 2021, used around 5 tons of recycled textile waste across the whole collection, the company said. Efforts toward a circular economy also included the Asics Reborn Wear Project, through which the company made the official sportswear for the Japan Olympic Team at the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics from recycled clothes donated from people across the country.
Asics also significantly expanded the scope of its contract for renewable electricity in Japan. All Asics-owned offices in Japan – including the company’s headquarters, Institute of Sport Science and the Asics Japan Corp. headquarters – are now powered by 100 percent renewable electricity. The company also made progress in sourcing renewable electricity in Europe.
