This post has been updated since its original publication date to include new info
In November 2022, it was revealed that Adidas would continue selling Kanye West’s super-popular Yeezy sneakers – despite terminating its partnership with him in October 2022 due to his controversial behavior and anti-Semitic comments – but would just do so under a different name. And it doesn’t seem like his previous actions negatively affected the interest in his sneakers, as the Financial Times confirmed that Adidas sold its leftover stock of Yeezys that were reportedly just sitting in a warehouse for an eye-watering $565M! Who knew the demand for unsold Yeezys was still so high?!
According to reports, Adidas put its first batch of unsold Yeezy sneakers up for sale last month, and sold an incredible four million sneakers in a 48-hour period. The demand was so high that Adidas couldn’t even fulfil all of the orders! The New York Post reports that Adidas said a “significant portion of the profits” from last month’s sale will be donated to five organizations in the U.S. and China that combat racism and anti-Semitism, including the Anti-Defamation League and the Philonise & Keeta Floyd Institute for Social Change, founded by George Floyd’s brother. It’s being estimated that the donations could exceed $9M!
Adidas Cut Ties With Kanye West In 2022 Following His Anti-Semitic Remarks
If you'll recall, the German sportswear company ended its $1.5B partnership with the 46-year-old Yeezy designer in October 2022, following his anti-Semitic comments which included saying he would "go to death con 3" on Jewish people. At the time, Adidas said it "does not tolerate anti-Semitism" and called Ye’s comments "dangerous and hateful."
According to a press release from October 25th, Adidas said it would "end production of Yeezy branded products and stop all payments to Ye and his companies." It also acknowledged that it would be taking a loss as a result of terminating its partnership with Ye and therefore, Yeezy branded products.
Adidas Said It Will Continue To Sell Yeezys Despite Ending Kanye West Partnership
Kanye's partnership with Adidas began in 2015 with the Boost 750 shoe, and has been going from strength to strength ever since. Fans of the popular sneakers were told that they needn’t fear – or bulk buy – when the news of the termination came, as Adidas assured fans the Ye-designed footwear will still continue to be produced, as Adidas is the "sole owner" of the design rights, although they won't have the same name moving forward. Several outlets reported at the time that the company's Chief Financial Officer, Harm Ohlmeyer, explained its plans for the future in a quarterly earnings call on Wednesday, November 9th, and said plans to "leverage the existing inventory" were being developed.
"I can confirm that Adidas is the sole owner of all design rights related to existing product, as well as previous and new colorways under the partnership," Ohlmeyer said. "We intend to make use of these rights as early as 2023," he added. Ohlmeyer also went on to say that, although the company will initially suffer a loss, he predicts that things will soon pick up as they won't come with the extra costs associated with such a partnership!
"This is expected to have a short-term negative impact of up to 250 million euros on the company's net income in 2022 given the high seasonality of the fourth quarter," Ohlmeyer said. "We will save over 300 million euros related to royalty payments and marketing fees. This will help us to compensate the vast majority of the top and the bottom line impact in 2023."
Backlash Over Adidas' Decision To Continue Selling Yeezys
As expected, there was a lot of backlash following Adidas' decision. Many Ye fans slammed the company for its decision to continue making and selling Yeezys, claiming that they wouldn’t have been as popular without his name or his design input, and they will therefore be boycotting the company moving forward.
"Oh so Adidas don't want Kanye but wants to keep selling FAKE Yeezys?? The disrespect!" one Ye fan wrote on Twitter. "You can't have your cake and eat it too. You can't cut all ties, cut his royalties then sell the product that is attached to him. Nobody gives a [expletive] if they own the designs legally. They support Ye. You will see... every post will be straight hate. Ye fanbase is insanely loyal," said another. "No one buying that [expletive] if it don’t have the Yeezy logo on em," predicted another fan, which another fan agreed with, writing, "Imagine buying Jordans without the Jordan logo? They’ll know the importance of branding."
Other Brands Who Cut Ties With Kanye West
Adidas wasn’t the only brand to have terminated its partnership with the "Eazy" rapper following last year's controversy, as Balenciaga, Creative Artists Agency, the UTA talent agency, MRC Entertainment, Skims, Gap, Foot Locker, Peloton, T.J. Maxx, and Madame Tussauds London are also among the companies who cut ties with him.
"Balenciaga has no longer any relationship nor any plans for future projects related to this artist," Balenciaga's parent company Kering told Women's Wear Daily at the time. Madame Tussauds also released a statement saying that Ye's waxwork, which was in the museum since 2015, has now been shelved, saying: "Ye's figure has been retired from the attraction floor to our archive. Each profile earns their place at Madame Tussauds London and we listen to our guests and the public on who they expect to see at the attraction."
