Nike Launches Disposable Shoe

Imagine a shoe weighing the equivalent of a bag of crisps, costing USD45 with a lifespan of up to 60 miles. The other, priced at USD250, is arguably the most high-tech shoe ever built. It comes with a computer microchip and operating system that analyses a runner's step and starts making cushioning adjustments in the heel of the shoe based on the runner's impact with the particular terrain after just three steps.

Adidas officials are confident their computerized shoe, dubbed the Adidas 1, can be sold to the mass market, with pairs hitting stores in December. Nike doesn't believe its Mayfly is for the majority of runners. Accordingly, the disposable shoes will hit stores this week in America, but will only be available in an extremely limited release that sources have estimated at around 5,000 pairs.

Last month Adidas announced its plans to produce the 1, its website crashed from the traffic and retailers engaged the phonelines. In the 24 hours post-launch, company officials say the shoe was featured on 186 television broadcasts throughout the world.

News of the Mayfly release in America is also expected to cause a stir. After the shoe's air-bubbled foam has worn down, its wearers can send the shoes back to Nike in a self-addressed stamped envelope. The shoe giant will recycle the material to make rubber athletic courts and tracks. Despite having all the elements of well-executed public relations campaigns, officials with both companies insist that the Adidas 1 and the Mayfly aren't gimmicks, citing their historical roots as the driving force behind their innovations.

A warning card in Nike's shoe cautions the runner not to wear the shoes longer than 62 miles, though the shoes won't exactly disintegrate if a runner exceeds that mileage. Despite the constant public focus on the latest and greatest in basketball shoes, running shoes actually outsold basketball shoes in 2003, making up 28 percent of the USD16 billion market, compared to 23.3 percent for the basketball variety.