Cirql, a Vietnam-based innovation company focused on developing scalable, less impactful, finished midsole components and material solutions for footwear brands, has won the ISPO BrandNew Award in the sustainability category for its latest innovation, Cirql Zero—an industrially compostable, biodegradable foam for footwear midsoles. The ISPO BrandNew Award identifies innovative and creative newcomer brands in the sports and outdoor industry, showcasing cutting-edge brands that are pushing the boundaries of their fields with new materials, technology, and sustainable practices.
“Cirql’s debut at ISPO has been incredible, and we are beyond honored and proud to win the BrandNew Award in the Sustainability category,” states Matt Thwaites, vice president and general manager of Cirql. “Having the opportunity to compete and win at the world’s largest international start-up competition in the sporting goods industry is a testament to the Cirql Zero innovation, our rigorous testing and manufacturing process, and the positive impact Cirql will have on the global footwear industry.”
A patent-pending innovation, Cirql Zero can be tuned to meet the design specs required by footwear brands. At the end of the product’s life, Cirql Zero exceeds the industrial compostability testing standard of 90 percent degradation in 180 days. It will be fully compostable in industrial composting. A standout feature of Cirql Zero is its manufacturing versatility. This midsole foam can be produced using supercritical foaming (SCF) technology in an autoclave process. This flexibility ensures that Cirql Zero is accessible to a broad range of manufacturers, streamlining its integration into existing production processes and paving the way for its rapid adoption across the global footwear industry.
Last but not least, Cirql Zero is the first midsole foam of its kind that can be scaled to hundreds of millions of pairs of shoes annually. As a brand focused on lowering the environmental impacts associated with footwear, Cirql is committed to transparent, verifiable claims, and trackable operations, materials, and processes.
