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It’s been a minute since adidas publicly severed ties with Kanye West over his antisemitic outbursts, but now the three-striped brand is being taken to court by investors who feel they waited too long to make the business decision.
Bloomberg is reporting that investors have filed a lawsuit against Adidas claiming that the German sportswear conglomerate knew the risks of partnering with the likes of Kanye West, but rolled the dice anyway and crapped out when it was all said and done. Apparently the higher ups at Adidas did indeed discuss the potential hazard that Kanye West presented back in 2018, but decided to continue their partnership with the controversial artist. That did not end well for anyone.
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In a 2018 annual report, released in March of the following year, Adidas ignored serious issues of partnering with Ye – and the risk to shareholders – by “generally alluding” to the risks “rather than stating that the company had actually considered ending the partnership as a result of West’s personal behavior,” according to the complaint.
Reports in subsequent years failed to disclose that West made anti-Semetic comments to Adidas staff, at one point suggesting that he might name an album after Adolf Hitler, according to the complaint. As the relationship with Ye eroded, so did Adidas shares, until the deal was terminated, according to the filing.
To make matters worse for Adidas, even after they cut ties with Kanye West, the company continued to accept shipments of Yeezy products from suppliers who were still producing it. Ultimately Adidas ended up with $1.3 billion in Yeezy merchandise that they now plan on selling off and giving the money to charity.
The lawsuit, which seeks to representing investors who bought Adidas securities between May 3, 2018 and Feb. 21, also names ousted former CEO Kasper Rorsted as a defendant.
The case is HRSA-ILA Funds v. Adidas, 23-cv-629, US District Court for the District of Oregon.
2023 is looking to be a struggle year for Adidas given everything that Kanye has wrought on the company.
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The Nordstrom Spring Sale is here! For a limited time, shoppers can save on shoes, clothes, beauty and grooming products, home goods and other spring essentials.
The sale offers up to 60% off bestselling brands, but if you’re looking for some of the deepest deals, you’ll need to hit up the men’s shoe department. Sneaker lovers can save up to 76% off tops brands including Adidas, Nike, Puma, Reebok and New Balance in addition to Fear of God, Givenchy, Raf Simons, Jill Sander, Alexander McQueen and other designer brands.
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To make things easier for you, we dug through the sale to find eight of the best deals on men’s sneakers. See the roundup below, and for more spring shopping recommendations, be sure to read our picks for the best music festival gear and can’t miss tech deals.
Adidas ’84 Forum Low Sneaker
$65 $100 35% off% OFF
With more than 2,000 customer reviews, it’s safe to say that Adidas’ ’84 Forum Low Sneaker has its own fan club. The ’84 Forum Low is on sale in blue and white colorways as well as purple and gold, and red white and blue. You can also find Forum ’84 Lows on sale at Adidas for $59.
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Fear of God The Essentials Tennis Mid Top Sneaker
$103.25 $295 65% off% OFF
Fear of God’s Essential Mid Top Sneaker is a sustainable shoe to cop during Earth Month and beyond. This casual shoe is made from pieces of recycled leather and available in cement, tobacco and warm taupe.
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An all-time classic. The ultra-comfortable New Balance 574 sneaker is on sale in four colorways including arctic gray (pictured) apollo gray, agave green and black/red.
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Vans U-Sk8 Hi-Sneaker
$39.98 $79.95 50% off% OFF
The walnut-colored Vans SK8 Hi-Sneaker is currently half-off at Nordstrom. This popular shoe has a velvety-smooth upper with a padded collar and rubber waffle sole.
Sorel Explorer Waterproof Sneaker Boot
$91
Part sneaker, part boot. The Sorel Explorer Waterproof Mid Sneaker will help you take on cold and rainy weather in style.
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Nike Air Presto
$67.60 $130 48% off% OFF
With more than 20 years under its belt, the Nike Air Presto is officially vintage. This high-performance running sneaker first hit the market in 2000 and has been a hit ever since. The Air Presto is on sale in select colors including the teal design pictured above along with black, white and gray.
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Nike Air Max Terrascape 97 Sneaker
$129.50 $185 30% off% OFF
Another vintage shoe from the Nike catalog, the Air Max Terrascape ’97 sneaker features the signature ripple design inspired by Japanese bullet trains. This shoe is on sale in summit white and black/elemental and pink/lime.
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Alexander McQueen Court High Dunk Sneaker
$272 $850 68% off% OFF
Alexander McQueen‘s Court High Dunk Sneaker offers up one of the deepest Nordstrom deals that you can find on men’s shoes. Marked down nearly 70%, this high-performance dunk sneaker features an airy mesh, color-pop accents and an exaggerated rubber sole.
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Ever since Kanye West went “death con 3” on the Jewish community, adidas has been experiencing a decline in both popularity, maybe, and sales, definitely. So it was surprising that the three-stripe brand decided to pick a legal fight specifically with the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation over their use of a logo that resembled the three stripes that adidas is known for.
Reuters is reporting that adidas has decided to back off its lawsuit and have retracted its initial claims just days after taking Black Lives Matter to court saying that the organization’s logo was “likely to cause confusion” between adidas and BLM. Though the three parallel lines that BLM was using did resemble the look on the Fear of God x adidas sneakers that leaked the other day, the brand isn’t looking for another public relations disaster just months after Kanye West put them on the hot seat with his antisemitic outbursts.
From Reuters:
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“Adidas will withdraw its opposition to the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation’s trademark application as soon as possible,” said the German athleticwear company in a statement.
A source close to the company said the rapid about-turn was triggered by concern that people could misinterpret Adidas’ trademark objection as criticism of Black Lives Matter’s mission.
Good call, adidas. Still, the German sports brand did rescind its “opposition without prejudice,” which means they reserve the right to once again take BLM to court on the same grounds in the future when they don’t have as much heat on them in the public eye. That could take a while as their popularity out in these streets is still struggle post-Yeezy. Outside of their Fear of God collaboration, it doesn’t seem like they have any heat dropping anytime in the near future.
With Kanye West basically radioactive these days and Beyoncé and her Ivy Park brand out the door, adidas doesn’t have much going for them these days. Suing Black Lives Matter might’ve proved too much to recover from.
Black Lives Matter meanwhile was trying to get in the merchandise game and “applied for a federal trademark in November 2020 covering a yellow three-stripe design to use on a variety of products including clothing, publications, bags, bracelets and mugs.”
We not gonna lie, we might be coping some three-stripe BLM merch once it drops. Just sayin’.
What do y’all think of adidas suing Black Lives Matter over their trademark and then backtracking just a few days later? Let us know in the comments section below.
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After years of theories and hype, the adidas and Fear of God collaboration is finally upon us. We’ve gotten a sneak peak at what Jerry Lorenzo and his brand have been crafting in the lab.
Three years after leaving Nike to work with adidas, Jerry Lorenzo is finally ready to unveil what he and adidas have been cooking up in the kitchen. In a statement released to Complex, Lorenzo let it be known that the time to drop the collection is upon us and we can’t wait to see what they have in store for us mortals. After a leaked pic of the sample Fear of God x Adidas silhouette dropped on social media, Jerry Lorenzo reached out to Complex to let them know he’ll be revealing the collection himself next month and to not believe everything they see on the internet.
“This is not the basketball sneaker from Fear of God and Adidas,” Lorenzo said of today’s leak, adding that the Fear of God x Adidas performance sneakers and ready-to-wear collections will be officially unveiled on April 19 during the Hollywood Bowl showing of Fear of God’s 8th Collection.
Truth be told, these sneakers ain’t bad though. Just sayin.’
Whether or not these sneakers are actually part of his collection or something someone put together at home in hopes of getting noticed by Adidas or Lorenzo himself is anyone’s guess, but the man obviously isn’t too happy with heads jumping the gun on something he’s been working on for the past few years.
That being said, now we’re more hype to see what the collection from the Fear of God x Adidas will be looking like as Lorenzo seems confident that heads will be more than pleased with what he’ll be unveiling at the Hollywood Bowl come April 19.
Are you looking forward to the Adidas x Fear of God collection? Do y’all think Jerry Lorenzo can salvage what’s left of Adidas popularity post-Kanye West? Let us know in the comments section below.
Jimin, Luke Combs, Løren, Rosalía & Rauw Alejandro all released new albums. Baby Tate & Saweetie gave us the collab we didn’t know we needed. Beyoncé & Adidas end their Ivy Park partnership due to creative differences. Latto builds her dream girl group. Selena Gomez urges fans to stop sending Hailey Bieber hate. Anitta stopped by Billboard News and spilled about the music she’s been listening to, what she’s working on next, the questions she hates being asked during interviews, and more!
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Months after cutting ties with Kanye West, adidas has parted ways with yet another big time celebrity. Their partnership with Beyoncé and her Ivy Park brand has come to an end.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, after five years of working together, Beyoncé and adidas have mutually agreed to go their separate ways. The news comes a month and change after it was revealed that sales for Beyoncé’s Ivy Park clothing line was down 50% and the three-stripe brand had been left roughly $200 million in the hole behind the lackluster sales. While the lack of sales could be blamed for the breakup, apparently creative differences between Bey and adidas are what led to the separation.
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Now that Queen Bey is fully in charge of Ivy Park and is back in the driver’s seat, she “is excitedly looking to reclaim her brand, chart her own path and maintain creative freedom.”
There is no word on whether another sports brand will be partnering with Beyoncé to relaunch Ivy Park in the near future. But we wouldn’t be surprised if Puma ends up undertaking the process as her hubby, Jay-Z, is the creative director of its Basketball division. It’s something that just seems a long time in the making.
From The Hollywood Reporter:
In 2016, Beyoncé debuted Ivy Park, which was a joint venture with Sir Philip Green of Topshop. The 50-50 venture with Topshop ended in 2018, and Beyoncé gained full ownership of Ivy Park.
In January, Beyoncé previewed Park Trail, her latest Adidas x Ivy Park collaboration, in Dubai a day before she performed a private concert in the city. It marked her first live show in four years.
For someone who boasts such a dedicated fanbase and world-famous BeyHive on social media, we’re kinda surprised they didn’t come out to support her Ivy Park brand in droves. The collections were pretty cool, and the colorways were as fresh as anything out in the market. Just sayin’.
What do y’all think Beyoncé should do with her Ivy Park brand now that it’s a free agent? Should she fly solo or link up with another top-tier brand going forward? Let us know in the comments section below.
After coming together with Adidas in 2018 to relaunch her athleisure brand Ivy Park, Beyoncé has parted ways from the sportswear giant, in a move that sources tell The Hollywood Reporter was mutual.
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The split was reportedly due to creative differences between Ivy Park and Adidas, with Beyoncé excited to “reclaim her brand, chart her own path and maintain creative freedom,” The Reporter writes.
During what Adidas referred to as “a partnership of a lifetime,” Ivy Park launched several collections, with the first launching in April 2019. The drop was fully equipped with a massive PR campaign involving closet-size traffic-cone-orange boxes being sent to celebrities including Missy Elliott, Cardi B, Kendall Jenner, Angela Bassett, Ciara, Reese Witherspoon and Hailey Bieber.
Despite the glittery promotional content, Ivy Park apparently did not live up to the hype Adidas was anticipating when they initially promised Beyoncé “guaranteed annual fees and creative control,” according to a Wall Street Journal piece from February. Instead of producing the hundreds of millions in revenue that Adidas expected — the company hoped Ivy Park would perform similarly to Ye’s Yeezy brand — Ivy Park releases undersold, with roughly half of the merchandise from five of the six releases remaining on shelves.
The Wall Street Journal article also indicated differences in strategy between Adidas and Ivy Park when it came to marketing, with the German multinational corporation pushing for their own branding. At the end of 2022, Ivy Park was predicted to reach $40 million in sales, down from $93 million the year prior. Although Adidas was positioned to lose at least $10 million in 2022, Beyoncé was set to make the same amount in compensation as previous years: $20 million.
Beyonce launched Ivy Park in 2016 with Top Shop owner Sir Philip Green. When the partnership ended in 2018, Bey’s Parkwood Entertainment acquired full ownership of the streetwear brand. Despite the breakup, Beyonce has much to look forward to considering the frenzy surrounding her upcoming Renaissance World Tour, kicking off in May. The mega-tour has already caused mayhem among fans eager to see the superstar IRL and will begin in Stockholm, spanning dates throughout Europe and North America.
Billboard has reached out to reps for Beyoncé and Adidas for comment.
Adidas is still wrestling with how to dispose of 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion) worth of Yeezy shoes after its breakup with the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, forcing the German sportswear maker into a big loss at the end of last year and expectations of more pain ahead.
CEO Bjorn Gulden said selling the popular line of shoes would mean paying royalties to Ye, who was dropped by Adidas five months ago after making antisemitic remarks on social media and in interviews. During an earnings call Wednesday, he pointed to “many variables” about what to do with the shoes now stacked in warehouses.
Destroying them could “raise sustainability issues,” though some companies have offered recycling solutions, said Gulden, who was named CEO after the blowup over Ye’s remarks. Restitching them to hide the Yeezy brand so they could be sold “is not very honest, so it’s not an option,” he added.
Suggestions to give them away to those in need in places like earthquake-hit Syria or Turkey would mean the product would “come back again very quickly” due to its high market value, “so that’s not really an option,” Gulden said.
If Adidas does decide to sell the shoes, “I can promise you that the people that have been hurt by this will also get something good out of it and get donations and proceeds in different ways, shapes or forms,” the CEO said.
Adidas split with Ye in October, following other brands that were facing pressure to end ties with the rapper over his antisemitic and other offensive remarks. The company is now struggling to find ways to become profitable again and replace its banner Yeezy line, which analysts have said amounted to as much as 15% of its net income.
The Ye breakup cost 600 million euros in lost sales in the last three months of 2022, helping drive the company to a net loss of 513 million euros. The decline, also attributed to higher supply costs and slumping revenue in China, contrasts with profit of 213 million euros in the fourth quarter of 2021.
More losses could be ahead, with the company forecasting a 500 million-euro hit to profit earnings this year if it decides not to repurpose the remaining Yeezy products in stock. The company is predicting a 2023 operating loss of 700 million euros.
Gulden said “so many companies” were willing to buy the popular shoes but that would mean paying royalties to Ye. Rumors that the company was in talks to sell them, however, “are not true.”
He had heard from “gazillions of people that have opinions about this, and of course when you’re sitting on the inside, it looks a little bit different than it looks on the outside.”
Gulden also said Adidas is still investigating former employees’ allegations that Ye created a toxic work environment and that the sportswear company knew about his problematic behavior and failed to protect workers.
The CEO called 2023 “a transition year,” saying “we can then start to build a profitable business again in 2024.”
Last year, fourth-quarter net sales were up a bare 1.3% at 5.21 billion euros from the same quarter a year ago. The company pointed to revenue dropping 50% in China and higher costs for supplies and shipping, which could not be offset by price hikes.
For the full year, the Herzogenaurach, Germany-based company said it made a net profit of 638 million euros on sales that rose 6%, to 22.5 billion euros.
Adidas also further shook up its leadership by replacing its top sales and marketing executives. Global sales head Roland Auschel will leave the company after 33 years and be succeeded by Arthur Hoeld, now head of the Europe, Middle East and Africa region.
Brian Grevy, head of global brands, will step down March 31. CEO Gulden will take on his product and marketing responsibilities.
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In another bad sign for adidas after cutting ties with Ye aka Kanye West, their credit ratings have been cut by S&P Global due
to the company’s expectations of earnings losses for 2023.
In a disclosure statement that was published on Tuesday (February 21st), the noted agency that judges the ability of companies to pay back what they’ve borrowed declared that they were cutting the global athletic brand’s long and short-term credit rating from “A+” to “A-“. They based this on the company’s warnings that their earnings would take a serious hit after cutting ties with the controversial artist. Adidas had previously projected that the dissolution of their deal with Ye could cost them $1.3 billion.
“Adidas faces a multitude of business challenges, including the termination of its Yeezy partnership, ongoing competitive pressures in the Chinese market, and a contraction of consumer demand in Western countries,” it said in the statement. They went on to state that adidas’ warning had a tremendous effect on their decision, especially when it came to uncertainty over their remaining Yeezy stock that it could still write off and not refit for sale. “This estimate is materially worse than our previous base-case scenario.”
Adidas terminated its partnership with Ye in late October after the DONDA artist had made a string of antisemitic comments. This included an appearance on the Drink Champs podcast where he publicly challenged the brand over his behavior and comments taken from an unaired interview with Tucker Carlson of Fox News.
S&P Global Ratings is not the only group of its kind to have a gloomy outlook on adidas’ expected financial fortunes for the year. Bernstein Research published a report that the company might’ve experienced these struggles even if it maintained its ties with Ye. They also projected that Adidas could experience losses of $2 billion, more than the estimated figure expressed in their disclosure statement. “The sales decline is about more than just Yeezy,” Bernstein analyst Aneesha Sherman said in an internal note. “We are concerned about the underlying health of the business that would drive such a drastic guide-down, even after stripping out the Yeezy impact.”
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In a bid to get ahead of profit losses in the wake of its split with Ye aka Kanye West, Adidas intends to rebrand its Yeezy stock.According to reports, the global athletic brand pointed to a plan of repurposing its surplus of clothing and footwear already manufactured before its severing of ties with the controversial artist last October as a way to avoid a massive financial loss estimated at $1.3 billion. The company detailed this in a profit warning issued through its website last Thursday (Feb. 9th).
The move to repurpose the Yeezy stock under the Adidas name may play out through a couple of options. The first would see the company sell the inventory removing the Yeezy label and selling the product at its own stores and at a discount to other retail partners.
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Another option is for Adidas to sell the repurposed items in smaller markets outside of the United States. “Somewhere where it’s not visible in their primary markets would be one approach they might take”, said Marshall Fisher, a professor at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
The brand could take the drastic move of destroying the remaining stock. The risk of further damaging its reputation is higher with this move as other companies who’ve done so have come under fire in the past. “We’ve seen that happen with other luxury brands out there who didn’t want to see their product discounted at the end of the season,” said footwear expert & former collaborator Matt Powell. Donating all of the stock is also on the table, and according to Fisher would go a long way to bolster Adidas in the eyes of consumers.
Adidas is still investigating the after-effects of ending the deal with Ye after he made several antisemitic comments last October. The brand said at the time that it does not tolerate antisemitism or other forms of hate speech. Shares in the company went down 11% after the news was announced.
—Photo: Source: Jeremy Moeller / Getty
