Adidas will continue selling its Yeezy shoe line but under a different name
Topics: Kanye West
Stewart Perrie
Featured Image Credit: LANDMARK MEDIA / Alamy Stock Photo. A. Astes / Alamy Stock Photo
Topics: Kanye West
Adidas is pushing ahead selling its Yeezy shoes range despite cuttings ties with Ye.
The clothing company has decided to profit off the stock but under a different brand name.
It severed its nine-year relationship with the rapper, previously known as Kanye West, last month after he made a series of antisemitic comments in the press and on social media.
Ending the business deal with West raised questions about all the Yeezy shoes that have been produced thus far, as well as future designs.
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According to CNN, Adidas believes it has the intellectual property to the Yeezy range and therefore will crack on with selling them.
Adidas finance chief Harm Ohlmeyer explained during a quarterly earnings call: "Going forward, we will leverage the existing inventory with the exact plans being developed as we speak."
He said Adidas has the intellectual property for new versions and 'new colorways'.
When asked what the company plans to do with the exisiting inventory of Yeezys, Ohlmeyer said (via Business Insider): "We need to take our time to review what the best options are.
"When the time is right we will be more concrete."
He had a similar answer when he was quizzed on whether it will look bad on Adidas from a reputation point of view if they keep selling the shoes.
"We are working through all the options. When the time is right we will be more specific," Ohlmeyer said.
Insider noted the only design Adidas will probably struggle with is the Yeezy Slide, as the patent is owned by Ye.
When unveiling its Adilette 22 sandals earlier this year, Adidas brought out a shoe that was eerily similar to the rapper's Yeezy Slide.
Ye wasted no time in ripping into the company.
The rapper called them 'a fake YEEZY made by adidas themselves' and added on social media: "I’m not standing for this blatant copying no more.
"This is for everyone who wants to express themselves but feel they can’t cause they’ll loose [sic] their contract or be called crazy... These shoes represent the disrespect that people in power have to the talent."
Ye hasn't responded on social media about the Yeezy shoe range being sold without the original name.
Adidas was set to lose $245 million when it revealed it would cut ties with Kanye.
Ohlmeyer confirmed the company's annual revenue will be around $50 million lower than expected this year.