Metro Brands diverts 4,892 tonnes of footwear waste from landfills in FY26
Metro Brands says its CSR-funded Old Discarded Footwear initiative recycled or co-processed approximately 12.5 million pairs in FY26, diverting 4,892 tonnes of discarded footwear from landfills.
What happened
Metro Brands reported diverting 4,892 tonnes of discarded footwear from landfills in FY26, processing about 12.5 million pairs through recycling and
Key facts
- 4,892 tonnes of discarded footwear diverted from landfills
- approximately 12.5 million pairs processed
Why this matters
Metro Brands’ waste-processing scale could support partnerships or acquisitions in collection, recycling, co-processing, and circular-materials infrastructure.
What to watch
- Disclosure of third-party verification, emissions avoided and the share of footwear materially recycled rather than co-processed.
- Growth in store-level collection points, consumer incentives and annual pairs/tonnes processed.
- Any Indian EPR, municipal-waste or footwear-specific regulation affecting collection and reporting obligations.
- Evidence that sustainability messaging improves loyalty, traffic, conversion or landlord partnerships.
- Material changes in CSR spend, reverse-logistics expense or recycling-partner capacity.
- Expand footwear take-back bins across Metro, Mochi, Walkway and other retail formats, linking returns to loyalty rewards or purchase vouchers.
- Publish assurance-backed metrics covering collection sources, recycling versus co-processing volumes, emissions impact and cost per pair processed.
- Use recovered-material pilots or limited circular product capsules to convert the waste program from a CSR activity into a product and margin narrative.
- Secure long-term processing agreements with recyclers, cement co-processors and logistics partners to manage rising collection volumes and compliance needs.