Ex-Gap CEO Says He Warned Kanye West About Working On YEEZY x Gap Collaboration
Image via Gap
Former Gap CEO Mickey Drexler recently said that he had warned Kanye West against collaborating with the brand. In June 2020, Gap had announced a 10-year partnership with West, with the rapper designing a co-branded collection for men, women, and children.
However, Drexler – who helmed the brand from 1992 to 2002 – said he didn’t think the YEEZY x Gap collaboration between West and Gap would be beneficial to either party.
“I told him he shouldn’t do the deal because it doesn’t make any sense in my opinion. It doesn’t work for someone like Kanye. He is not a corporate person and Gap is a big corporation,” Drexler told Yahoo Finance Live.
Drexler added that while he thought West was “a smart guy,” the YEEZY founder “shouldn’t have done it… and I don’t think they [Gap] should have done it, either.”
However, it does seem that West’s partnership with Gap has elevated the fashion label’s presence. According to Insider, the brand’s shares rose as much as 42% when the deal was announced.
Plus, its first item, a bright blue bomber jacket retailing for US$200, was said to have made US$7 million in sales, though Drexler didn’t provide evidence to support the claim.
While the sales figures from the YEEZY collaboration aren’t out yet, USB analysts estimated that the partnership could be worth as much as US$970 million – which would be pretty beneficial for both parties.
[via Insider, cover image via Gap]
Also check out these recent news
