Kanye West was a footwear trailblazer. Now sneakerheads must reckon with Adidas dumping Yeezy
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Last month, sportswear giant Adidas cut ties with its longtime sneaker and apparel collaborator Ye — or the rapper formerly known as Kanye West — following anti-Semitic comments he made on social media.
The move puts an end to the brand’s now-iconic Yeezy collaboration line.
Yeezy merchandise was one of the pillars of Adidas, raking in between $1 billion and $2 billion in annual revenue for the German brand. The collaboration also has a life outside of the traditional retail world, with Yeezy sneakers reselling on sites such as StockX and GOAT for hundreds, sometimes thousands of dollars.
To break down what the move could mean for the sneaker market, The Show spoke with Luis Torres, editor-in-chief of Nice Kicks. The conversation began with why he thinks it took Adidas so long after the comments were made to finally sever ties with West.
