Posted by Kanye West’s collaboration with Gap has been one of the fashion brand’s most successful clothing campaigns in years, and the achievement has not been lost on Ye.
In a post on Instagram, Yeezy explained that the money was not the driving force behind his Gap link-up, but his genuine love for chairman Bob Martin’s business brain.
“On my moms birthday I was able for the first time to sit in on a Gap call with Bob Martin, Bob Fisher and other leads of the company,” Kanye captioned a photo of Bob Martin. “Bob Martin was one of the most inspiring people I’ve heard speak in business. He kept saying go to the stores on the call. I came to Gap to put good product directly in stores.”
He continued: “We’ve had 2 of the biggest sales day in Gap history since I’ve been there. We sold 14 million dollars worth of the perfect black hoodie at 80 dollars a hoodie off of a television commercial that was ran one time. I came to Gap to bring good quality products to the people at all times. Bob I need to meet with you as soon as possible.”
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While Kanye was gearing up to release the second capsule from the Yeezy Gap engineered by Balenciaga collection back in May, he ultimately decided to delay the release out of respect for the victims of the Uvalde school shooting in Texas that left 19 children dead.
“In light of the tragedy in Uvalde, Texas, we are postponing the Yeezy Gap Engineered By Balenciaga launch until Friday, May 27,” Yeezy Gap said in a statement. “As we pause, our hearts go out to the families and communities impacted.”
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The collection dropped a week later, and once again found Kanye linking up with Balenciaga’s Demna Gvasalia to craft garments the rap icon has worn himself over these past few months.
Denim jackets, jeans, t-shirts, high-top boots, gloves, masks and hoodies all went live on May 27, with t-shirts priced around $140 while hoodies were upwards of $240. The padded denim jacket retailed at $440. The collection is now available on Yeezy Gap’s website.
While Kanye currently has a 10-year deal inked with Gap, reports emerged in June that Ye is likely planning to expand into his own stores at some point, as his legal team recently filed to trademark “YZYSPLY” for retail stores.
YZY/GAP/Balenciaga collection 1
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