Nike has wasteful habit of destroying returned sneakers: German reporters

German reporters alleged that Nike has been destroying new shoes that have been returned instead of reselling them.

A report by NDR, Die Zeit, and research startup Flip revealed that the sportswear giant sent new, undamaged shoes that have been returned to them in Germany to its recycling plant.

The shoes are shredded or downcycled into smaller pieces to be used as materials to make up new goods.

Customers return the Nike sneakers when they don’t fit or look as expected, with many not even making it out the door and labels still intact.

Flip founder and journalist Christian Salewski said they care that the shoes were not in any way defective and didn't even have a scratch.

Parts of the dismantled shoe might likely be fused with other virgin materials to create a new product, while some would go to waste.

The team figured out the practice by purchasing a new pair from Nike and adding a GPS tracker to the sneakers before returning them.