What you can learn from footwear's two-track race to net zero

Fast Company

21-05-2025

When we talk about decarbonizing industries, footwear doesn't often steal the spotlight. Yet behind every pair of sneakers or boots is a complex web of supply chains, raw materials, energy consumption, and logistics. While our shoes leave physical footprints, they also leave behind a much larger, often invisible carbon and waste footprint.
The footwear industry is estimated to be responsible for hundreds of millions of metric tons of CO₂e emissions each year—that's more than the emissions of some entire countries. And it's a sector undergoing massive transformation, fueled by a perfect storm of shifting regulation, growing consumer demand for transparency, and the urgent need to build climate resilience into business models.
What's exciting is that we're finally starting to see momentum from both sides of the decarbonization equation: radical innovation and operational rigor.
The innovation track: Rethink how shoes are made
Innovation in footwear manufacturing has typically been focused on performance and aesthetics alone, but that's evolving. Today, some of the most forward-thinking brands are applying that same creative energy to impact, tackling not just how to build better shoes for us but also how to build them better for the planet.
A powerful example of this is On. The brand's new LightSpray technology uses a world-first process that eliminates the traditional cut-and-sew approach to constructing shoe uppers. It reduces waste, energy, and materials, and, crucially, carbon. Using prospective life cycle assessment (LCA)—a highly scientific process that calculates the future environmental impact of a product or technology (based on projected data and scenarios)—it was found that LightSpray has the potential to reduce production emissions by about 75% compared to traditional techniques.
So, what can we learn? This breakthrough matters not just for the brand itself, but for the entire industry. Globally, around 23.9 billion pairs of shoes are produced each year, and the majority of them still rely on traditional methods that contribute both to emissions and waste throughout the supply chain. Beyond footwear, what's most notable isn't just the number—it's the willingness to build sustainability into innovation at the R&D phase, not as a post-launch add-on. That's a shift in mindset that every industry can learn from.
The infrastructure track: Build out data and processes that make change possible
While innovation grabs headlines, what often moves the needle at scale is what happens behind the scenes. Infrastructure supports measurement, monitoring, and decision making. In footwear, where the indirect Scope 3 emissions coming from a company's entire supply chain typically account for up to 90% of total footprint, the need for accurate, granular data is critical.
That's where brands like Axel Arigato are leading: not by launching one breakthrough product, but by laying the groundwork to reduce emissions across their entire value chain. Axel Arigato recently calculated its full corporate carbon footprint in addition to LCAs for over 270 of its products. This gives the brand visibility to identify impact hotspots and tools to make science-backed reductions—product by product, shipment by shipment, and decision by decision. The work enabled the brand to dive deep into understanding the impact of its products and business to a level of detail they have never gone into before. 'We have always strived to produce products that are less impactful on the environment, and we can now confidently measure this and communicate about it to our consumers,' says Albin Johansson, CEO of Axel Arigato.
This kind of backbone work isn't all that flashy, but it is essential. Having a baseline understanding of the status quo enables all kinds of companies to move from ambition to action, and to do so in a way that's resilient to legal requirements like reporting, investor pressure, and consumers shifting their expectations. It can even help provide the confidence to communicate impact publicly, in a world where green claims are heavily scrutinized
Taking a step beyond footwear
The race to decarbonize isn't exclusive to footwear or the wider fashion industry. But it does cast a revealing lens thanks to its material-intensive, design-driven, and deeply globalized nature. With footwear revenue projected to surpass $472 billion by 2028 and sustainable footwear alone expected to nearly double to $18.25 billion by 2034, the stakes—and opportunities—have never been higher.
Crucially, the industry is showing us what it looks like when innovation and infrastructure finally work together. Because, with net zero targets and legal requirements looming, one without the other isn't enough anymore.
A revolutionary new process can't scale responsibly without solid measurement and validation. Just like a robust data system doesn't drive progress unless it's tied to product and design decisions. The future depends on both, and the businesses that are most future-proof are the ones willing to run down this dual track. So, whether you're in footwear or finance, the lesson here is clear: Lower impact is not about sticking to one strategy for reduction. It's a system-wide transformation that calls for imagination, precision, and bold partnership.
Now, progress increasingly means fewer promises and more proof. And the sooner this double-edged strategy is scaled across industries, the better for our planet.