Foot Locker yanked Kanye West’s Yeezy sneakers off its shelves Tuesday, hours after Adidas cut ties with the embattled rapper.
West, who changed his name to Ye last year, has come under fire for spewing antisemitic comments.
“Foot Locker, Inc. does not tolerate any form of antisemitism, or hateful and discriminatory behavior,” a spokesperson said in a statement. “While we remain a partner with adidas and carry a wide assortment of their collections — we will not be supporting any future Yeezy product drops, and we have instructed our retail operators to pull any existing product from our shelves and digital sites.”
Workers at the sneaker chain’s 874 stores were instructed to put Yeezy products in the backroom until “further notice” according to an employee memo, Footwear News reported.
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The retailer joins nearly half a dozen companies that are severing ties with the controversial rapper.REUTERS
The decision came on the heels of Adidas ending its $1.5 billion deal with West, who has seen his fashion empire crumble in the past weeks.
Balenciaga, Vogue and CAA had previously cut ties with West in the wake of his Oct. 9 tweet in which he wrote, “I’m a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I’m going death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE.”
Foot Locker condemned West’s antisemitic
statements on Tuesday.SOPA Images/LightRocket via Gett
On Tuesday, the Gap also said it was taking “immediate steps to remove Yeezy Gap product” from stores. It also shut down YeezyGap.com.
In addition, the RealReal, one of the largest clothing resale sites, said it would ban sellers from listing Yeezy products on its site, according to a Vice report.
The ruptured corporate ties have reportedly resulted in West losing his billionaire status, according to Forbes, which estimates that $1.5 billion of his $2 billion net worth was tied to Adidas.
Source link: https://nypost.com/2022/10/25/foot-locker-is-latest-retailer-to-cut-ties-with-kanye-west/