Adidas’ terminated partnership with Kanye West left the company with $1.3 billion worth of unsold Yeezy stock, but it’s still not sure what to do with it.
In conference call on May 5, per The Associated Press, new Adidas CEO Bjorn Gulden said the “options are narrowing” and the company is “getting closer and closer to making a decision.” He says Adidas is “trying to avoid” destroying the shoes altogether.
The end of the partnership, due to Ye’s antisemitic rants, has resulted in millions of dollars in lost sales, which Gulden says is “of course hurting us.” AP reports the termination led to $441 million in lost sales at the beginning of the year, with Ye losing an estimate of $1.5 billion, according to Forbes.
Gulden failed to disclose the number of Yeezys left “because then the consumer would know how many we have and that could have an impact on demand.” He says the company is trying to move beyond the situation, noting 2023 will be a “year of transition” that will lead to “a better ’24 and a good ’25.”
His statement comes in the wake of a lawsuit against Adidas in which investors allege the company “ignored serious issues” with the partnership in a 2018 annual report and failed to limit the financial losses in its partnership with Ye.
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