Adidas says it will unload Yeezy shoes without loss

BERLIN (AFP): German sportswear giant Adidas said Wednesday that it will unload its stock of Yeezy sneakers at or above cost, a decision which helped it eke out a profit in 2023.

Adidas made an operational profit of 268 million euros ($290 million) in 2023, well down from 669 million euros the previous year. But at one-point last year, the company warned it might lose 100 million euros because of write-downs on Yeezy.

In 2022, Adidas broke off its contract with controversial rap star Kanye West after he made a series of anti-Semitic remarks, leaving it stuck with thousands of unsold Yeezy shoes they had developed together.

Two partial Yeezy sales in 2023 brought in 750 million euros, well below the 1.2 billion euros of revenue the logo had generated in 2022.

Adidas said any profits would be given to charities.

The lower Yeezy sales, as well the devaluation of the Argentinian peso at the end of the year, cut 2023 sales by 5 percent to 21.4 billion euros. The company said sales were unchanged at constant exchange rates.

The company said it expects sales to grow 5 percent in 2024 in constant terms, including 250 million from Yeezy. It expects operational profit of 500 million euros.