Kanye West and Adidas Collaboration
The billion-dollar collaboration is on the verge of collapse
I know you must have heard about collaboration between companies. What about collaborations between individuals and companies? Even at that, it is usually difficult to find partnerships where the individual controls the brand and the company owns the production line.
“Yeezy” is one of such partnerships. Adidas Yeezy is a fashion collaboration between German sportswear company “Adidas” and popular American rapper” Kanye West”. Adidas reports that the “collaboration has become notable for its high-end limited-edition colorways and general releases offered by the Yeezy Boost sneakers lineup. The collaboration has also produced shirts, jackets, track pants, socks, slides, women's shoes, lingerie, and slippers. The first shoe model was released in February 2015.”
The former presidential aspirant had earlier launched the same shoe line in 2009 with Nike, a close competitor to Adidas, with an average selling cost of $215 per shoe. The partnership lasted until 2014, releasing two Air Yeezy and the Air Yeezy Two. The public rumor is that he left Nike for Adidas because they offered him royalties on the shoes. Who will reject a 10-15%% royalty fee?
The first Adidas Yeezy Boost sold out in 10 minutes in February 2015. Thousands of people queue up to buy the shoe. The shoe line won the Kanye West Yeezy Boost FNAA Shoe of the Year Award | HYPEBEAST. In the same year, Adidas’ sales and net income increased by 14% and 10% respectively. Why won’t a global musician with over 18m followers on Twitter alone sell out a limited exclusive brand?
According to Fashion law, “All of the patents, and a similar copyright registration, are assigned to – and thus, owned by – Adidas, and West receiving royalties based on sales in connection with the use of his Yeezy marks. Hence, the $191 million check West received from Adidas in 2020.
Despite the rewards and recognition, Adidas is reviewing its partnership with Kanye West after the artist lambasted the company and wore a “White Lives Matter” T-shirt in public. Adidas is reviewing its partnership with Kanye West after 'White Lives Matter' incident | CNN Business. Adidas is the second major partnership that West has publicly scorned. In September, the rapper who now goes by Ye, terminated his partnership with the Gap because of “substantial noncompliance.” He accused both companies in his now-deleted IG post that “Gap having meetings about me without me. Adidas releasing old shoes and colouring my shoes like I’m dead.” He also accused Adidas of releasing products similar to Yeezy slides.
The feud threatens the long-term relationship between the two parties. This whole saga has so many twists and turns as Ye has existing contracts with the corporate partners and he’s expected to work with Gap and Adidas until 2030 and 2026. Ye has gone ahead to say he will most likely create campuses and the products sold in these campuses will be unique to both Yeezy’s physical and online shops. West said it’s time for him “to go at it alone” and “to make the new industry. No more companies standing in between me and the audience.” Kanye West Leaving Adidas And Gap Partnerships Once Contracts Expire, He Says (forbes.com).
What’s your thought on this partnership? What do you think about Ye’s decision? Do you think Adidas were/are true in their dealings with the Grammy Award winner?
By the way, it’s usually folks in entertainment and sport that do this sort of partnership. I hope to see more career folks join this bandwagon.
Cheers to a profitable lifestyle,
TL.