Nike is making huge strides in both inclusivity and sustainability with the creation of GO FlyEase, the brand’s first-ever hands-free sneaker.
The innovative new shoe isn’t simply a sneaker without laces or velcro. Rather, it is fitted with a bi-staple hinge and midsole tensioner that allows for quick and easy entry.
More specifically, the bi-staple hinge works to keep the shoe open while your foot is in it and leaves it in the ready position for tomorrow when you’ve slipped them off for the day. Once the foot is inserted and the wearer uses their weight to step down, the hinge releases and the shoe snaps shut to fit securely around one’s foot.
Taking off the shoe is a similarly intuitive endeavour, whereby rather than stepping on the back of the heel, the GO FlyEase has a kickstand-type heel that snaps the shoe open when stepped on. Meanwhile, the midsole tensioner, which is made from materials typically used on the bottom of a shoe, offers unique flexibility, mimicking the “kicking off a shoe” motion with greater ease than ever before.
The GO FlyEase represents a major win for inclusivity, specifically among people with disabilities, for whom putting on a shoe can be far from a simple task. So far, the GO FlyEase has been praised by Paralympic triathlete Sarah Reinertsen and champion wheelchair fencer Bebe Vio.
“Usually I spend so much time to get in my shoes,” says Vio. “With the Nike GO FlyEase, I just need to put my feet in and jump on it. The shoes are a new kind of technology, not only for adaptive athletes but for everyone’s real life.”
Lastly, in an effort to incorporate sustainability into more of their designs, Nike has stated that all of the materials used to create the GO FlyEase can be recycled into Nike Grind, the brand’s own recycled material that is made up of pre-consumer manufacturing scraps, recycled post-consumer shoes from the Reuse-A-Shoe program. The sportswear company then uses the recycled Nike Grind material to create other products, helping to achieve their circularity goals.
The GO FlyEase, which will be offered in three colourways, and is set to become available to select Nike members on February 15, 2021, at a retail price of $120 USD. Sometime this spring, Nike will roll out the shoes to the broader public.
All images in this article are courtesy of Nike.
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