Smartwool Second Cut Hike Sock is made with repurposed yarn from the company’s Second Cut sock takeback program that launched in 2021.
The Second Cut sock highlights Smartwool’s shift toward a circular business model, which involves collecting and repurposing materials for deconstruction and reuse.
Smartwool is one of the first brands to commit to a focus on sock circularity. After several years of experimentation and thousands of consumer donations, Smartwool is re-spinning old socks into new yarn. The repurposed yarn is blended with responsibly sourced Merino wool. It is designed with an elasticized arch and seamless toe for comfort. Smartwool teamed with Material Return , a circularity manufacturing facility in North Carolina, to develop and refine the process.
“Smartwool’s partnership with Material Return has ultimately led to a closed-loop model that goes beyond recycling,” said John Ramsey, Director of Product Development at Smartwool. “We were able to accomplish this through new and innovative technology, team collaboration, and consumer participation. Investing in this process has enabled Smartwool to take leaps forward toward our goal of shifting towards a more circular business model.”
Don’t Toss Old Socks
Only 14 percent of textiles are recycled, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Socks are one of the most discarded pieces of apparel. In April 2021, Smartwool launched its Second Cut sock takeback program to drive change in eliminating waste from the apparel industry. It also wanted to make it easy for consumers to be part of the solution.
Through the Second Cut program, consumers can recycle any sock brand, color, size, and material. Only material from donated Smartwool socks is used to create the Second Cut sock. The first product featuring consumer donations was Smartwool’s Second Cut K9 Camp Cushion dog beds, where donated socks were repurposed into bed filling.
Since the Second Cut program launch, Smartwool has collected more than 725,000 socks and diverted more than 54,200 pounds of socks from landfills. To participate in the takeback program, consumers can add a pre-paid, mail-in bag to their cart at checkout to return used socks for recycling.
Smartwool Second Cut Hike Sock is available for purchase here.
