- Adidas will start offloading its Yeezy stock worth $1.3 billion at the end of May.
- The company plans to donate proceeds to nonprofits including one run by the sister of George Floyd.
Adidas will start selling its $1.3 billion pile of unsold Yeezy sneakers and other items within days and donate the proceeds to charities.
In a statement Friday, the company said it would release an initial batch of Yeezy stock at the end of May.
It's the first time consumers can buy Yeezy items since October, when Adidas severed ties with Kanye West's label after a series of antisemitic rants from its founder who's now known as Ye. A collection of new designs and older stock will be available through the Adidas website and app.
The group announced last week that it planned to sell its huge stock of Yeezys and donate the proceeds to charity, but hadn't revealed further details. The shoes will comprise existing designs previously on sale as well as 2023 ranges.
Adidas said the charities benefitting from the sale will include the Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish NGO specializing in civil rights law; and the Philonise & Keeta Floyd Institute for Social Change, a group run by the sister of George Floyd that aims to deliver community programs.
Adidas CEO Bjørn Gulden said selling and donating the shoes was the preferred option among the stakeholders it consulted. As recently as its earnings call in April, the company still hadn't decided what to with the stock.
"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," Gulden said.
"There is no place in sport or society for hate of any kind and we remain committed to fighting against it."
Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, welcomed the Adidas decision.
"At a time when antisemitism has reached historic levels in the US and is rising globally, we appreciate how adidas turned a negative situation into a very positive outcome," he said, per the Adidas statement.