How The Chloe Nama Sneakers Lower Their Environmental Impact

Gabriela Hearst is making good on her sustainable vision for Chloe, with a new Spring sneaker that's lower-impact in every way.

By Gordon Ng, 27 Dec 2021

Under Gabriela Hearst's creative direction at Chloe, the French luxury house has fully embraced sustainability. Hearst made that vision very clear from her first collection, which was a cosy bundle of up-cycled and reworked fabrics. She has continued to build on that, with a Spring (AKA Cruise) line of recycled cashmeres and knit fabrics.

Part of that Spring lineup is the Nama sneaker, a new style that makes use of lower-impact materials. Together with sustainability consultancy Quantis, Chloe has looked at the Nama sneakers' life cycle to determine its environmental impact. That's an assessment that starts from the raw materials all the way to the production. The results: the Nama sneakers emit 35 per cent less greenhouse gases and use 80 per cent less water compared to the Sonnie, its predecessor style.

The brand achieved this by using lower-impact – which largely means recycled – materials. On the upper, for example, the webbings, laces and transparent mesh entirely use recycled polyester, nylon and cotton. Recycled rubber and EVA make up 20 per cent of the sneaker's soles, and are assembled using water-based glues that use fewer chemicals than solvent-based ones.

And where there is leather, like suede on the upper and calfskin on the footbed lining, the brand has sourced its materials from a Leather Working Group-certified tannery. All in all, a good-looking sneaker that truly makes the effort. Below, a look at the available colourways.