Karimoku New Standard turns crushed ASICS trainers into seating

Karimoku New Standard has released the KNS x ASICS Collaboration globally, cushioning two seating designs with foam recovered from crushed, unused ASICS trainers. The Japanese furniture brand, a sub-brand of manufacturer Karimoku, confirmed the launch after debuting the range in Japan earlier this year.

The project draws on deadstock and sample footwear from ASICS that would otherwise have been discarded. That's the polite term. The shoes are, in practice, manufacturing leftovers that nobody bought.

How do you make a sofa out of old trainers?

The process borrows a technique ASICS already uses for its upcycled Neocurve trainers. Footwear gets dismantled, sorted and crushed to extract Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA) foam — the flexible, lightweight material found in midsoles, outsoles and footbeds. According to Karimoku New Standard, the recovered foam is then blended with cotton and paired with a three-millimetre condensed foam sheet to form a hybrid structure.

That structure now serves as cushioning in the Castor Lobby Sofa and the Polar Lounge Chair. Both pieces carry an embroidered tag marking the collaboration.

Where did the idea come from?

The collaboration grew out of a mundane commission: Karimoku New Standard was building seating for the meeting spaces in ASICS' Tokyo office. Somewhere between prototypes, shoe waste became a furniture material.

"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."

Read that last line twice. The brand's argument isn't just that recycling is virtuous — it's that crushed trainers perform better than the alternative would suggest. It's the rare sustainability claim that leads with function rather than conscience.

Does this fit a wider pattern?

Yes, on both sides. Karimoku has previously collaborated with Zaha Hadid Design, among other brands. ASICS, for its part, has been busy in fashion circles: it released the "minimalist" Hyper Taping trainers with Issey Miyake and designed pastel-coloured trainers with Danish brand Hay.

The KNS x ASICS Collaboration now sits somewhere between those two tracks — sportswear waste filtered through a furniture maker with eight decades of woodworking behind it. The bet, evidently, is that an office chair cushioned by shredded sneakers can sell on comfort alone. The global release will test whether customers agree.