Last October, Adidas ended its partnership with Kanye West, who legally changed his name to Ye, in response to several anti-Semitic comments he’d made. CNBC reported in February — and the likes of the Associated Press and Rolling Stone reported again at the beginning of May — that the abruptly severed relationship left Adidas with $1.3 billion in unsold Yeezy product. On May 11, Adidas CEO Bjorn Gulden revealed the company’s plan to salvage what can be salvaged.
“What we are trying to do now over time is sell parts of this inventory and donate money to the organizations that are helping us and that were also hurt by Kanye’s statements,” Gulden told investors, as relayed by Complex at the time.
That plan came to fruition today, May 31. Adidas’ official website is headlined by Yeezy, advertising that “some of the remaining inventory” of his products are available on the brand’s app, Confirmed, and promising that a “portion from the sale of these items will be donated in support of the fight against discrimination, hate, racism, and antisemitism.”
An accompanying press release details that the benefiting organizations include the Anti-Defamation League and the Philonise & Keeta Floyd Institute for Social Change.
“The release will mark the first time that products have been available to consumers since adidas terminated the Yeezy partnership in October 2022,” the press release explains. “The products will be existing designs and designs initiated in 2022 for sale in 2023. Additional releases of existing inventory are currently under consideration, but timing is yet to be determined. Today’s announcement has no immediate impact on the company’s current financial guidance for 2023.”
“After careful consideration, we have decided to begin releasing some of the remaining Adidas Yeezy products,” Gulden said in a statement. “Selling and donating was the preferred option among all organizations and stakeholders we spoke to. We believe this is the best solution as it respects the created designs and produced shoes, it works for our people, resolves an inventory problem, and will have a positive impact in our communities. There is no place in sport or society for hate of any kind and we remain committed to fighting against it.”
The May 31 Yeezy drop comes one day after Billboard reported that Adidas’ request for an emergency order re-freezing of the $75 million held by Yeezy was denied by a federal judge.
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