Smartwool released its first circular sock, the Second Cut Hike Sock, made with repurposed yarn from the brand’s Second Cut sock takeback program that launched in 2021. 

The Second Cut sock highlights Smartwool’s shift toward a circular business model—collecting and repurposing materials for deconstruction and reuse.

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 and designed with an elasticized arch and seamless toe. Smartwool teamed up with the North Carolina-based circularity manufacturing facility Material Return 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.”

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), “only 14 percent of textiles are recycled, and 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 and making 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, but only material from donated Smartwool socks was 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 launched, Smartwool reported it 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 when shopping on Smartwool’s website to send in used socks for recycling.

For more product information, go here. 

Photo courtesy Smartwool