But what does it mean for Adidas and Yeezy? Sneakerheads and industry insiders differ on whether or not the excitement generated from a day full of drops was warranted.
“It feels like leftovers. But not Thanksgiving leftovers that almost taste better than they did fresh out the oven. This is like week old leftovers,” sneaker YouTube star Mr. Foamer Simpson told FN. “It just feels like them offing a bunch of inventory from Kanye’s garage or something. I don’t know, I’d be a lot more excited about a new Yeezy silhouette.”
The NPD Group Inc. senior sports industry advisor Matt Powell, however, believes customers are excited about the second chance to buy beloved shoes — but also warned against a potential long-term issue a restock of this magnitude could cause.
“I think consumers are probably excited to have access to products they missed the first time around. [But ] I do think this will have a negative impact on the resale prices. Any time there’s a restock of this kind of quantity typically it hits the resale prices really hard.”
He continued, “The real longer-term caution is they continue to have ample supply of product, which means their resale market essentially goes away. A lot of what drives the interest in this particular line is the consumer being able to flip them for a nice multiple. We saw over holiday several of the holiday releases were selling essentially for suggested retail price. That, to me, is not a good indicator when shoes that were selling for high multiples are selling for virtually nothing.”
Canada-based influencer Cid “The Kicks” Merisier hopes this is the beginning of better Yeezy inventory control.
“It gives a chance for regular folks to cop — remember, Kanye said everyone will wear Yeezy,” Merisier said. “[It appears that] Mr. West is giving the people what they want: the chance to get it like any regular shoe. No more line ups to get them or worries to get hurt for any reason. I also feel the brand should not be built around the dreaded resellers, meaning Adidas regains control of the stock being pushed.”
The restock included several Boost 350 V2, Powerphase, Boost 700, 500 and Boost 700 V2 colorways. All except the Yeezy Boost 700 V2 “Vanta” were released in men’s sizing. (The “Vanta” looks also came in sizes for kids and infants.) Prices ranged from $150 to $300.
Despite not being thrilled with what’s being offered, Mr. Foamer Simpson believes the constant talk on social media today gives both Adidas and the Yeezy brand a much-needed visibility boost.
“It’s definitely good for the brand because people have been talking about Adidas, and more specifically Yeezy’s, for the last couple days. So in that regard it’s a win,” Mr. Foamer Simpson said.
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