Adidas to Produce Yeezy Brand under New Name

Weeks after cutting ties with the embattled American rapper Kanye West, Adidas is set to continue “releasing shoes designed in collaboration with West without the famous Yeezy brand.”  

Shortly after Adidas announced that it had parted ways with West, Forbes scrapped the rapper’s name from the billionaires list. The contract is believed to have involved around $1.5billion, according to several news agencies. But West contests the figure.

West’s anti-Semitic comments that he made last month inspired Adidas and a host of other brands he was in business with to disassociate themselves with him. The German sportswear company said it “does not tolerate anti-Semitism”, referring to West’s anti-Semitic comments as “dangerous and hateful”.

According to Adidas, the brand is the “sole owner of certain design rights,” which it intends to make use of next year.

“Adidas is the sole owner of all design rights registered to existing products…we intend to make use of these rights as early as 2023,” Harm Ohlmeyer, Adidas’ chief financial officer said.

Ohlmeyer added that plans to “leverage the existing inventory” are currently being developed.