Today adidas began a further release of YEEZY inventory with a range of existing products being available in phases over the coming weeks across the world.
Source: adidas announces further release of existing Yeezy products
Yeezy x adidas sneakers only had value due to their ability to be resold. They weren’t performance models. They weren’t functional. They only offered fashion appeal. This limited the reach of the partnership and althought it reached a billion in sales, Yeezy’s billion-dollar status is unlike any other brand partnership. The relationship netted adidas money, but it never created fans of The Three Stripes.
Does adidas’ Liquidating More Yeezy Inventory Change the Decline in Resale?
When compared with Nike’s Jordan Brand the difference is immediately clear. Jordan is both performance and casual, the shoes extend across price points. Jordan Brand crosses demographics and gender. Jordan Brand improves the value of Nike and although it could stand alone, the brand and the parent, Nike, are inseparable.
Yeezy is a true standalone brand. It’s not adidas that gained the benefits of YZY in brand building. The shoes very rarely had a trefoil or logo in a visible area. To make things even more interesting, whenever adidas ramped up the production on the sneaker, it stumbled. Sales slowed and Yeezy’s brand “power” shifted.
Towards the forced end of the relationship, Yeezy wasn’t selling through on release day. Yeezy sneakers (outside of the Foam RNRS and Slides) were no longer valuable on the resale market. YZY had entered the 3–5-year window where a brand solidifies itself or begins its descent. To be clear the brand partnership began in 2014. By 2019 Yeezy was cooling off and adidas realized they couldn’t increase production numbers. adidas had also given the U.S. market to the promotion of YZY diminishing all of their other products in North America. Covid was a reset and gave adidas x YZY more runway, but the decline had already begun. By 2022 Yeezy was becoming redundant.
Where is Yeezy now as adidas prepares to move more of the remaining product? Using the keywords as a comparison “adidas + sneakers + men’s” and “Yeezy + men’s” provides insight into a slowing marketplace. Logic precedes predictions, adidas is readily available. The search should show more sneakers sold. Yeezy has not been readily available. The number of Yeezy sneakers sold should decrease and the average sold price should increase in value. Data is from 3rd party sales and should be compared to the article Is adidas in Trouble without Yeezy?
Note: This post is offered as support for any discussion on whether adidas is doing this out of need or because it will bring some relevance to the brand. The short answer is adidas is simply recapturing lost revenue. YZY is more of a novelty product akin to concert merch. True fans of Ye, and people fascinated by the man, will gravitate towards the product, but this does not add any value to adidas and will not have value in the resale market.
To fully understand this data, there are a couple of items to consider:
- eBay data is up year over year on the sneakers category, but down for adidas.
- The majority of Yeezy sneakers made available during previous drops were Foams and Slides. This means the average price is shaped by the smaller SRP of Foams and Slides.
- An additional search on just the keywords Yeezy + men’s + 350 year over year should see higher average sold, but the reality is 2022 vs 2023:
Jan 1, 2023 – Dec 31, 2023
