Brainstorming with Nike

On Friday 20 April 2018, we had the pleasure of holding the Nike Grind Circular Innovation Challenge brainstorming session. This session brought in creative and passionate minds from the Impact Hub community whose ideas are prominent to making the world a better place.
Nike Grind is a premium palette of recycled materials recovered from used footwear and manufacturing scrap that pushes the boundaries of a circular, waste-free economy. The goal of the Design with Grind Challenge is to identify promising new solutions for Nike Grind materials, so that the company can use the waste material to create products that improve the lives of the people who use them, while reducing waste in the world around us. The grind materials include rubber, EVA (ethylene-vinyl acetate) foam, full grain leather, laminated EVA foam, laminated polyurethane foam, mixed apparel textiles, mixed footwear textiles, footwear fiber “fluff”, coated leather and synthetic leather.
The session was led by the question, ‘How might we create a waste-free, circular future by designing everyday products using Nike Grind materials?’ Participants were split into two groups (group A & B) and brainstormed on ideas that were not only eye opening but also had inspirational background stories that led to the potential prototype selection.
The pitch session was guided by a few topical areas:
Description and reason of choice – what it is the problem is being solved?
Target Community – who is it for and why?
Social Impact – what change/development does it bring?
Scaling (growth, monetization) – income generation, sustainability, market growth

It became evident that the two product ideas that came out of the brainstorming session from each of the groups could be a powerful package combined into one unchallenged item. We are looking forward to the success of the proposal and to get the team through to the final stages and develop, launch and sustainably commercialise the project.
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