Meet Mylo: Adidas introduces Stan Smith sneaker made from mushroom leather

A little something for Earth Day.

Adidas has rolled out a Stan Smith-build sneaker made entirely out of mushroom leather, or Mylo. The nature-based alternative to typical leather is made with mycelium or the root of mushrooms.

Because of its strong material, sheets of the mycelium leather were grown two weeks in a lab, tanned, then dyed to create the rich brown material found in the kicks. The material was initially developed in 2018 by U.S. biotechnology company Bolt Threads.

The sneaker was made with sustainability in mind, with Adidas envisioning a “fully circular future” where natural ingredients are grown and made in labs and eventually returned to the earth through their products.

This wouldn’t be the first time that mycelium material was used in a universally-known brand, as Stella McCartney Lululemon, and Hermès have all experimented with the leather alternative for their products.

“The introduction of Mylo as a new material is a major step forward in our bold ambition to help end plastic waste,” said Adidas’ Amy Jones Vaterlaus.

“Stan Smith is one of our biggest and most iconic franchises, meaning we can slate the rollout of Mylo faster to create a more immediate and significant impact for the environment—with a commercially available proof of concept expected in the near future.”

The Stan Smith Mylo is only a concept piece for now, with Adidas yet to announce a mass-produced roll-out of the sneaker.