As sales decline, Adidas faces pressure to find Yeezy fix

Adidas (ADSGn.DE) is set to update investors on Friday about the unsold Yeezy shoes that have put the German sportswear giant in a predicament since it cut ties with Kanye West over his anti-Semitic comments late last year.

Executives are expected to tackle the issue when the company reports first-quarter results on May 5 which will likely show a 4% decline in net sales to $5.07 billion, according to a company-compiled consensus.

Investors have high hopes new CEO Bjorn Gulden can turn Adidas around: the stock has gained around 65% since Nov. 4 when the former Puma CEO was first floated as a successor to Kasper Rorsted, despite Adidas warning it could make a $700 million loss this year if it writes the Yeezy shoes off entirely.

Adidas has been in discussions over the footwear, including with people who “have been hurt” by West’s antisemitic comments, Gulden said in March, but there are no easy fixes.

The value of Yeezy shoes in the resale market has rocketed since Adidas stopped producing them, with some models more than doubling in price, but the company has yet to decide what to do with its unsold stock.

This report’s information was first seen on REUTERS; to read more, click this link.