Adidas ends collaboration with Kanye West
Adidas cut ties with rapper Kanye West, declaring that “anti-Semitism and any form of hate speech” is not acceptable for the company.
After West’s “White Lives Matter” T-shirt at Paris Fashion Week, Adidas decided to review the Yeezy brand collaboration they have been continuing since 2015.
Days later, the famous rapper shared anti-Semitic comments on his Twitter account.
After the sharing, Adidas announced that the products will be removed from sale immediately.
Adidas previously said that the Yeezy brand collaboration with West was one of the most successful in the company’s history.
The breakdown of cooperation means Adidas will experience net losses of approximately $250 million in 2022.
West previously accused Adidas of stealing his own designs, but later deleted this post.
In a statement to the BBC, Adidas stated that they tried to resolve the issue repeatedly after West accused them of stealing his designs, and then they decided to review the Yeezy collaboration.
“Adidas does not tolerate anti-Semitism and any other hate speech. Ye’s (Kanye West) recent comments and actions were unacceptable, hateful and dangerous, the firm’s diversity and inclusiveness, mutual respect and fairness,” Adidas said in a statement today. undermines its values”.
After the announcement, Adidas shares fell about 5 percent.
West’s business partnerships have been under pressure lately.
JP Morgan Bank, clothing firms Gap and Balenciaga also announced in October that they were ending relations with West.
Black Lives Matter, which was introduced in the summer of 2020 after the murder of unarmed black George Floyd by a police officer in the USA, represents opposition to racism and police violence.
