Kanye West at an event announcing a partnership with Adidas on June 28, 2016 in Hollywood, California.
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Adidas ended his partnership with Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, on Tuesday after the musician made a series of offensive and anti-Semitic comments.
Adidas said in a statement, “Adidas does not tolerate anti-Semitism and any other type of hate speech. Ye’s recent comments and actions have been unacceptable, hateful and dangerous, and violate the values of diversity and inclusion. , mutual respect and fairness of the company.”
“After careful consideration, the company has made the decision to immediately end the partnership with Ye, end production of Yeezy-branded products, and halt all payments to Ye and its companies. Adidas will halt the Adidas Yeezy activity with immediate effect.”
The German sportswear giant had been pressured by the public and its own employees to sever ties with Ye, who said on a podcast on October 16: “I can say anti-Semitic things, and Adidas can’t let me go. . And now ? “
Adidas fell 3.3% in morning trading in Frankfurt, after Bloomberg announced early in the day that it planned to end the partnership,
The company said it began a review of the partnership on October 6, but has been widely criticized for its inaction since then.
In a post on LinkedIn on Monday, US-based Adidas employee Sarah Camhi wrote, “It’s been 14 days since Kanye started spouting anti-Semitic rhetoric and adidas has been silent; both in internally for employees and externally for our customers”.
The Trade Marketing Director added: “We have to do better as a brand. We have to do better for our people and we have to do better for our communities. ‘Adidas.’
Adidas began working with Ye in 2013, and in 2016 signed an agreement to manufacture and distribute items from its Yeezy clothing line through the company. Adidas has previously said the partnership has had a “tremendous impact” on its business and is one of the most successful collaborations in its industry’s history.
However, Ye has publicly criticized Adidas, as well as some of its other business partners such as retailer Gap, in recent months.
He told CNBC that Adidas was “copying” his ideas and also posted social media tirades against the company, specifically targeting chief executive Kasper Rorsted and board members.
In a note on Tuesday, Credit Suisse analysts outlined various risks to the company, including a recent larger-than-expected earnings warning,
