Adidas said it would begin selling part of its huge inventory of Kanye West’s Yeezy products in May, and donate proceeds to NGOs including one founded by the brother of George Floyd. The merchandise has been in limbo since Adidas ended its partnership with the controversial rapper in October 2022. The apparel group did not provide any details on the quantity of stocks it would put on the market in its initial release at the end of May.

It said only that “a range of existing designs will be available exclusively” through the website adidas.com/yeezy and the adidas CONFIRMED app. “Additional releases of existing inventory are currently under consideration, but timing is yet to be determined,” it said. Adidas CEO Bjorn Gulden said the group had made its decision as “selling and donating was the preferred option among all organizations and stakeholders we spoke to.

“We believe this is the best solution as it respects the created designs and produced shoes, it works for our people, resolves an inventory problem, and will have a positive impact in our communities.” The proceeds will go to organizations such as the Anti-Defamation League and the Philonise & Keeta Floyd Institute for Social Change, the group said. Philonise Floyd is the brother of George Floyd, a Black American murdered by a white police officer who pinned him to the ground by kneeling on his neck for nearly 10 minutes. Adidas halted its tie-up with West - now known formally as Ye - after he made a series of anti-Semitic outbursts. —AFP

As a result, the group ended production of the highly successful Yeezy line designed together with West. Not selling the apparel and shoes linked to West would potentially lead to a revenue loss of 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion), the group said when it announced its 2022 full-year results earlier in May.- AFP