Day: July 28, 2023

Business

[Fox Business] Adidas will sell more outstanding Yeezy inventory

More of the outstanding Yeezy inventory that Adidas is looking to part ways with will soon go on sale.

Adidas revealed Friday that beginning next week, it would put more of the popular shoe designs from its ex-partnership with Ye, the rapper previously called Kanye West, up for purchase. The sportswear company intends to make donations to several organizations using a “significant amount” of the proceeds like it did last time, according to its press release.

The offloading of the Yeezy products via digital platforms will start Wednesday and will take place in phases. That strategy is meant to “help manage demand whilst ensuring a fair and premium experience for consumers,” the company said. 

It will mark the second time Adidas has sold some of the Yeezy products it has been sitting on. 

ADIDAS SELLING YEEZY SHOES ONCE AGAIN AFTER CUTTING TIES WITH KANYE

The first happened in May, with Adidas going on to report earlier this week that it had seen a “positive impact” from that initial Yeezy sale. That move partly prompted the sportswear company to change to a “mid-single-digit” revenue drop rate and a narrower €450 million ($499 million) operating loss in its 2023 financial forecast.

A report from the Financial Times that cited unnamed sources suggested the company saw people place roughly €508 million (about $565 million) of orders during the first round of sales it did. 

Adidas first found itself with heaps of Yeezy shoes and other products in outstanding inventory when it put a stop to its relationship with Ye in October. It reported the apparel was worth $1.3 billion.

ADIDAS REVEALS PLAN FOR YEEZY SHOE LINE

The company said it chose to do so “after a thorough review,” pointing to the “unacceptable, hateful and dangerous” antisemitic comments the rapper had made at the time.

Some other companies moved to separate from Ye after his remarks, one of which was retailer Gap. It removed Yeezy Gap items from store shelves and shut down the website associated with the apparel line it formerly had with the rapper. 

ADIDAS FACES YEEZY-FOCUSED CLASS-ACTION SUIT FILED BY SHAREHOLDERS

Adidas said Wednesday that it will send some money that it makes from the Yeezy products to the Anti-Defamation League, the Philonise & Keeta Floyd Institute for Social Change and the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism (FCAS). Robert Kraft, the billionaire owner of the New England Patriots football team, started the FCAS a few years ago.

The company’s stock finished trading on Friday afternoon just under $102. That price represented a more than 18% increase from where it was 12 months ago.

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