There is no such thing as guilt-free consumption, even our most mundane daily choices (think waste disposal) have an impact on the world, our environment, and persons around us. Many of us strive to improve as persons, products, or organizations but it is often very easy to dismiss our own impact in contributing to sustainable consumption. No matter how little we each contribute, when aggregated to society level our individual actions produce results. The 21-year-old third millennium will be the age when humanity transitions from carefree consumption to a smarter, more environment friendly way of approaching everyday life. As a global society we are still far away from leading a totally sustainable life but hey, the first flight of the Wright brothers only lasted 12 seconds and 36 meters and 120 years later we can take showers over the Atlantic (yeah, I know…not exactly a sustainability example but it shows the progress mankind can make when we put our minds to it).

At ninjoo we try to embrace sustainability any way we can and we know that we are far from perfect but Rome was not built in a day, and in the end long-term developments are all about the right mindset, and that ninjoo has. When we look for products we always look at the story behind them, their creators and the passion these individuals put into realizing them, and one passion that always catches our eye is sustainability. Especially when it comes to the luxury segment we believe products have a responsibility to leave as small a footprint as possible on earth since by definition they are…well luxury. 

Sustainability can have different faces, sometimes not easily recognized as such. RS Barcelona, for example, sees durability of a product as the essence of sustainability and their commitment to the planet and society is to manufacture top-quality, hard-wearing items through environmentally friendly production processes that last a lifetime. Bredder, a small brand from Germany known for its high-quality handmade balance boards, uses only regional and certified suppliers, and embraces a holistic sustainability approach down to the corrugated cardboard packaging that ensures there is no plastic in the entire production journey. The Swedish paddle/tennis brand Nordicdots, in true Scandinavian spirit, makes a point of respecting the environment and its inhabitants and therefore incorporates sustainable eco-friendly innovations in everything they do. They go as far as recently endorsing tennis player Andrey Kuznetsov from Russia because he is an ardent advocate of sustainability and eco-friendly innovations. 

Ninjoo’s take on sustainability: one small step for each one of us, one giant leap for mankind (credit to the first man on the moon).

Build a glass or Perspex cage with two opposing open doors on either side, throw in a Tennis net in the middle, let two players (more commonly couple teams though) use rackets with solid hitting surfaces rather than strings combat each other, and mix up the rules so you can bounce the ball off the walls or even attempt to stay in the game by running through the doors to catch a ball that was knocked out of the ballpark…sounds crazy, right? Enter Padel!

Most easily explained as a mix between Squash and Tennis with a twist, Padel is developing an almost fanatic following in the Middle East and is a fast-paced, high-energy sport that challenges a player's skills and endurance to the maximum. Unlike Squash and Tennis, you can actually credit the invention of Padel to one single person in Mexico. In 1969 Enrique Corcuera decided to modify the Squash court at his home in Acapulco with elements of Tennis and when his Spanish friend Alfonso Hohenlohe-Langenburg tried it in Enrique's home he took the sport to Spain to create the first Padel court in Marbella in 1974…and the rest is history.

How does Padel work? The court is 25% smaller than a regular Tennis court, the net is 88cm high, rackets are without strings, to add speed balls are more pressurized than in Tennis, and the ball is allowed to bounce off the wall and can even be played from outside the court as long as it doesn't bounce twice on the field. All this creates incredible, sometimes crazy ball exchanges and is equally interesting to play and to watch.

Naturally, the sports industry has picked up on the trend and most tennis racket brands have their own offering of padel rackets and at ninjoo we could have picked any racket for you, but we wouldn't be…well ninjoo, if we didn't have our own opinion on the subject. For us, the element of style and design is a must-have complementary element to playability and technical specification. We wanted rackets that are equally professional equipment and distinguished design to help our customers stand out from the crowd, and the usual padels in the market just didn't make this cut. Random design patterns with oversized brand logos on the playing surface maybe great for a brand's visibility on court but they are not a showcase for individual style; and that is how Nordicdots caught our eye. True to the Scandinavian design principles of minimalism and functionality Nordicdots designs are mainly based on color and texture with complete absence of bold random patterns, and discreet branding that is visible on close up encounters but does not turn you into a flag-bearer for the brand. Also, and in true Scandinavian spirit, Nordicdots makes a point of respecting the environment and its inhabitants and therefore incorporates sustainable eco-friendly innovations in everything they do.

Nordicdots is a young brand, driven by the passion of its creators, and many of you will know by now that ninjoo has a weakness for passionate creators as these are the true pioneers that go where no man and woman has gone before (credit to the all-time classic captain Kirk).

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A punching bag is a dynamic piece of exercise equipment that can be useful for professional fighters and fitness seekers alike. The beauty of a boxing bag is that you don’t need to be in a gym to get good use out of it. You can hang it inside your home, garage, back porch, or anywhere you can find the space. But after you buy a punching bag, your next step is to properly learn how to hang the bag. It will help to avoid unnecessary incidents, and that is what we will be talking about in this post.