After Kanye and Adidas parted ways in the most controversial way, there remained something unsettled. What was going to happen to Yeezys? Did this breakup mean that Yeezys are officially dead? Well, apparently not. In fact, Adidas has big plans for all Yeezy designs. The concept: Yeezy-LESS Yeezys. In other words, the plan is that Adidas sells Yeezy sneakers without Ye – without the YEEZY branding.
So, Ye – aka, Kanye West – has been taunting the idea of a breakup since the beginning of October. In all honesty, we thought that Kanye was going to walk out on Adidas with a new partnership in hand. Especially with all the shade he was throwing! Just like he did with Nike! But, that was not the case. Because it was Adidas that dropped Kanye and kept Yeezy sneakers to themselves. All the design and production rights STAYED with Adidas. Ye probably did not think that through.
And now, if Adidas sells Yeezy sneakers without Yeezy branding, what will happen? Let’s go through Adidas’ plan for Yeezys and see whether or not the Yeezy legend lives on without Yeezy.
ADIDAS SELLS YEEZY SNEAKERS WITHOUT YE
Here’s the deal. So, when Adidas terminated its partnership with Kanye, they made one thing clear: the Yeezys stay with them. It’s like a divorce and The Three Stripes got custody! Loosely translated this means: Adidas sells Yeezy sneakers without Ye. And, he can’t do anything about it.
Apparently, Adidas owns all the designs for Yeezy sneakers. This ultimately puts Kanye’s claims that Adidas was ‘ripping off his designs’ with the Adilette 22 and Adifom under suspicion. If they own the design, did they really steal them? Not really. So, this means that Adidas has all the right to sell and make sure of Yeezy designs! Furthermore, this will also save the brand about 302 million dollars in the royalty and marketing fees they paid Kanye.
“Let me be clear, we own all the IP [intellectual property], we own all the designs, we own all the versions and new colorways,” Adidas finance chief Harm Ohlmeyer said.
“Going forward, we will leverage the existing inventory with the exact plans being developed as we speak”.
The decision where Adidas sells Yeezy sneakers obviously makes sense. Yeezys have been the key source of income for Adidas for YEARS. And the breakup definitely hurt the brand costing them nearly 250 MILLION dollars in profit! Whereas Yeezys used to bring in at least 2 billion dollars in sales – around 8% of Adidas’ total sales.
But, how will this affect the consumer interest?
What Will Happen if Adidas Sells Yeezy Sneakers Without Ye?
So, if Adidas sells Yeezys sneakers without Ye, will people still want them? After the late Kobe Bryant, Adidas went on to sell the signature sneaker with new branding. And, people still love them! However, those are two completely different situations.
Thus, if Adidas sells Yeezy sneakers without ye, what can we expect?
Well, according to analysts, Yeezy-less Yeezys are not the way to go! For starters, no matter what they call them, they’ll still be Yeezys associated with Ye. Therefore, offering people a Yeezy sneaker without the YEEZY branding just won’t go through. Especially if Adidas prices them the same. Adidas has announced that the production of Yeezy-less Yeezys might be as soon as the beginning of 2023. Do we call that the next Yeezy drop?
In a nutshell, if they’re gonna sell us an Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 as an Adidas Boost 350… might as well buy an UltraBoost, no?
But, if YOU’RE still copping, you’ll need these:
– NOT Yeezy size guide
– How to clean your NOT Yeezys
– How to care for and repair your NOT Yeezys