Keeping Sneakers Clean – And Out Of Landfills

Every year, the world produces 24 billion pairs of footwear, and over 90% of them end up in landfills within just one year. Think about that for a second. That’s billions of shoes made with synthetic materials that don’t break down, clogging up drains and floating in oceans. In fact 40% of that waste ends up in the sea.

Footwear contributes to a significant chunk of ocean waste — and yet, there’s no proper solution in place for their disposal. When I started Steampress back in 2016, we were focused on regular laundry. But soon, we pivoted into shoe care — and what I discovered shocked me.

Most shoes being made today aren’t built to last. The materials? Cheap. The glue? Weak. Repair policies? Non-existent. 

The only option was the local roadside cobbler — and even that fix wouldn't last long. Something so simple, yet it completely determines the lifespan of a shoe. No matter how good the upper or sole was, the whole shoe was destined for the garbage.

In our early days, we survived thanks to a basic sole-pasting service with a 2-month warranty. Post COVID, that service became a lifeline for us — and it also raised a bigger question: Why aren’t modern products made to last? Are brands really creating shoes with such a short life cycle just so we’re forced to keep buying?

To do our bit, we started a small donation drive. The idea was simple: donate your old pair, and we’ll give you a free wash in return. We then clean and restore those shoes, and pass them on to people who need them. But even here, we saw something strange — people were donating expensive shoes that had been worn for years. Yes, we gave them a second life, and that felt good. But it also pointed out something deeper.

We saved over 1,50,000 pairs of shoes from being discarded and helped donate 750 restored pairs. But even that felt small when you realise that 698 shoes are dumped into the landfill every millisecond.

We're proud to be doing our part — and we’ll keep going. But the real solution lies with the consumer mindset.

Cheap usually means disposable. And cheap can’t be donated.

As consumers, we need to change how we buy. Let’s invest in better footwear. Let’s be more conscious of the number of pairs we own. Let’s think quality over quantity. And let’s find ways to reuse, repair, and donate what we no longer need.

Because while we clean sneakers at STEAMPRESS — what we’re really trying to do is keep them out of the landfill.



Views are personal