adidas will not sell any YEEZY design in the future

Despite the split between adidas and Kanye West in November, it was initially mentioned that YEEZY designs would still be on sale with releases starting in 2023. But Gulden has now made it clear in an earnings call that selling YEEZY products without the name attached is “not an alternative.”

Although this year’s first YEEZY product sale generated sales of $441 million and allowed the company to dispose of 20% of its YEEZY inventory, Gulden confirms that the company will continue to gradually sell off current inventory without making assumptions about sales performance.

“The YEEZY product is something [Ye] created, he is the inventor and we have been his partner. Taking his designs and selling them later, something we could technically do legally, is not part of our strategy. Our task now is to limit the damage, get rid of the inventory, use the profits for good…and build a business later without YEEZY,” Gulden said.

North American sales have seen a 16% decline for adidas, and while the sale of YEEZY inventory helped improve gross margin and operating profit in the first quarter, the company took a €400 million loss from not selling YEEZY merchandise in that period.