Need to Know
27 : 11 : 19

Montreal – The new brand wants to create a DNA that the runner of the future can relate to.

Having run a successful Kickstarter campaign, Way Running aims to push the running industry forward with a more sustainable product offering. Its first product is a running shoe that uses a blend of natural and recyclable materials and simple design, with no logos or decorative elements. When a customer is finished with the shoe, Way Running will disassemble the components and re-use pieces accordingly, rewarding customers with a discount.

Rethinking the typically technology-driven nature of sustainable footwear, its branding is highly emotive, with slogans such as ‘don’t run from, run for’ and ‘running for a better future’. The brand is also building a feedback loop within its BETA program, in which customers provide feedback on the product – including how often they wear it and for what activities – to create a continuous improvement cycle that informs each version of the shoe.

When it is launched in April 2020, Way Running will join a host of brands re-inventing the Sustainable Footwear Market.

Kunshan, China – The design firm has created a sprawling children’s leisure space inspired by the area’s cultural ties with opera.

Named the MIXc Kunshan, the play area is a collaboration with parent-child brand Meland Club and re-imagines public space in shopping malls. By taking a zone that would traditionally be used for commercial value and turning it into a leisure space, X+Living is putting learning, playfulness and curiosity back into the retail experience.

To strengthen the cultural identity of the local area, the space has been inspired by Kunqu Opera, one of the oldest forms of Chinese opera. Rather than being influenced by its traditional aesthetic, the design studio mixed elements such as the Yunjian garment and Kuitou headpiece with cartoon installations to create a ‘dreamlike wonderland’.

As parents and children seek elevated bonding experiences, Premium Play Spaces have the ability to transform retail spaces, leisure clubs and malls alike.

New data from the World Health Organization (WHO) reveals changing global rates of exercise and activity among teenagers aged 11 to 17 years.

Its survey of 1.6m adolescents across 146 countries, firstly in 2001 and more recently in 2016, has been analysed, revealing 81% of teens around the world are not meeting WHO recommendations of one hour of moderate to vigorous activity a day.

While improvements in lowering rates of inactivity among teens have occurred in Bangladesh, Singapore, Thailand, Benin, Ireland and the US, inactivity is rife in other regions, due to both economic and cultural influences.

Notably, some of the highest rates of inactivity were found in high-income Asian countries, in particular among girls in South Korea, where 97% did not meet the WHO guidelines. Sub-Saharan Africa was the region with the second highest prevalence of insufficient activity among boys (84%), behind the Asia-Pacific region (89%).

Fiona Bull, senior author of the study, suspects vast economic growth in Asia – which has driven increased use of screen-based technologies – and a culture that regards education as more important than exercise are behind the figures. For more on teen mindsets in South Korea, read our Emerging Youth Market.