Adidas partnered with Beyonce in 2019 to develop products for the Ivy Park brand. Photo: Instagram/Ivy Park
Adidas and pop star Beyonce have reportedly ended their partnership following disappointing sales, just as the German sportswear maker struggles with the fallout of the collapse of its Yeezy shoe alliance.
The unprofitable partnership is set to end later this year after another round of merchandise from the Ivy Park line hits market, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
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The company didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. The Hollywood Reporter earlier said that the two sides were breaking up.
Adidas CEO Bjorn Gulden is looking to turn around the struggling brand after joining the company in January.
The German apparel maker is already dealing with the fallout of its cancelled Yeezy partnership after cutting ties the musician and designer Ye (Kanye West) following his string of antisemitic statements.
Adidas partnered with Beyonce in 2019 to develop products for the Ivy Park brand, which the pop star owns and had launched a few years earlier.
The first products from the Adidas x Ivy Park collection hit market in January 2020, right as the pandemic was taking hold of the world.
Since then, the collaboration has produced sales figures that were well below Adidas’s expectations, the Wall Street Journal reported. Revenue fell by more than half to US$40mil (RM177mil) in 2022, while the company had targeted US$250mil (RM1.1bil) for that year, according to the newspaper.
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Earlier this month, Gulden said it’s been difficult for musicians to grow their fashion brands in the Covid-19 era, due to frequent lockdowns as well as cancelled tours and festivals.
Gulden said it should be easier to market these products now.
Last week, Beyonce introduced a separate collection in a partnership with French fashion house Balmain. – Bloomberg
