Adidas on Tuesday ended its partnership with Ye, formerly known as Kanye West after the American rapper made a series of offensive and antisemitic comments that didn’t sit well with the brand.
It is also reported after Adidas announced its intentions to cut ties with Kanye West, major brands like Gap hours later followed suit saying it will immediately remove Ye’s Yeezy products from its stores. It shut down YeezyGap.com, which now redirects to the Gap website.
“Antisemitism, racism and hate in any form are inexcusable and not tolerated in accordance with our values,” said Gap, which announced in September that it would end its partnership with Ye. The clothing retailer said it would sell through its remaining Yeezy inventory last month in September.
Adidas will now join Gap Inc. and fashion brand Balenciaga in prematurely severing ties with West. The rapper has made controversial statements, including anti-Semitic posts on social media recently, and has gone as far as ending ties with his corporate partners. The Yeezy brand accounts for up to 8% of Adidas’ total sales.
“Adidas does not tolerate antisemitism and any other sort of hate speech. Ye’s recent comments and actions have been unacceptable, hateful and dangerous, and they violate the company’s values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect and fairness,” the company said.
“After a thorough review, the company has taken the decision to terminate the partnership with Ye immediately, end production of Yeezy branded products and stop all payments to Ye and his companies. Adidas will stop the Adidas Yeezy business with immediate effect.”
Adidas, Gap Inc. and fashion brand Balenciaga have all prematurely severed ties with Kanye West
Ye sparked a flurry of criticism by wearing a “White Lives Matter” t-shirt at Paris Fashion Week. He was later blocked from his Twitter and Instagram accounts after repeatedly making anti-Semitic remarks. Some users have called for a boycott of Adidas products until the partnership with Kanye West is cancelled.
Adidas’ decision also cost Ye his billionaire status. Forbes estimates that without the Adidas deal, his net worth has dropped to $400 million, which comes from his music catalogue, real estate and his 5% stake in ex-Kim Kardashian’s shapewear company, Skims. Forbes valued his Adidas deal as adding $1.5 billion to his net worth.
The Yeezy brand makes nearly $2 billion a year for Adidas, 10% of its revenue, according to Morningstar analyst David Swartz. “Adidas struggles to compete with Nike for top sponsorships, so Yeezy was one big advantage,” Swartz said.
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