Is Yeezy Fast Fashion? An Expert Breakdown!

With the rise of fast fashion, people are looking towards more innovation in fashion because seeing the same recycled designs can be quite tiring. Simply copying the market trends is not enough anymore because people want to see the brands’ personal touch in every design that can make the items unique. A similar demand is being made for shoe brands as well.

Adidas is one such brand that continuously strives to introduce new designs in its collections even though it is a fast fashion brand. Its shoes have a uniqueness that is characteristic of Adidas which is why the brand is one of the biggest shoe brands in the world. It has design teams that are constantly working on developing new shoes that can appeal to the general public.

The Yeezy brand was created by Kanye West who had always had a fascination with hip-hop and fashion. He was doing well in the world of rap but he wanted recognition for his fashion sense as well. In 2006, he released his first shoe collection called “College Dropout” with Bape which helped him launch himself in the fashion world. The shoes received a considerable response because he began getting future deals for more collaborations.

In 2009, he had the opportunity to work with Nike for a line called “Nike Air Yeezy” which went on for 5 years. They released more collections together that gained worldwide fame and cemented Kanye as a force to be dealt with. However, the collaboration ended in 2013 because Kanye was not satisfied with how much creative control he was given. He wanted to work whenever the inspiration hit him but Nike had a set plan for every release.

His earnings were given over to charities and soon after, Kanye was approached by Adidas which offered a much better deal than Nike. Unlike Nike, Adidas offered to pay 15% of the royalties to Kanye. Together, they released the Yeezy collection that saw unprecedented fame.

 

Sustainability Rating: 3/10

Category: Shoes, Clothing

For: Women, Men

Products: Sneakers, T-shirts

Style: Trendy, Futuristic, Chic

Quality: High

Prices: -

Size: 35 – 51 (European Size)

Fabrics: EVA, Algae Foam, Leather, Mesh, Cow Suede, Silicone

100% Organic: No

100% Vegan: Yes

Ethical and Fair: No

Recycling: No

Manufacturing Countries: Not transparent enough

Certifications: Not transparent enough

Yeezy’s designs are said to be futuristic and unique which is a huge reason behind its popularity. No one had seen a style like this before. Kanye West was big on experimenting and introducing styles that had never been seen before. One look at a Yeezy shoe can help you realize how different it looks from other sneakers, boots, and heels.

Moreover, he even worked to extend his Yeezy brand by incorporating clothing and accessories in collaboration with other brands because the one with Adidas did not bear much fruit as compared to the shoe line. Despite his efforts, the clothing line was not able to grow as much as the shoe line but it still did considerably well.

Interestingly, the Yeezy shoes were loved by athletes so West came up with a special collection meant for athletes. With every new release, West brought more innovation into the style that kept up the interest of the customers.

However, things turned sour in 2022 when West made tons of antisemitic remarks in interviews and on his social media that had the brand rethinking their collaboration. Even though Kanye had a strong belief that the brand would not break off the relationship, the contract was terminated the same year and Adidas stopped manufacturing and selling the shoes immediately.

It is hard to categorize Yeezy as fast fashion because while it does follow some fast fashion trends, it also digresses in many ways. New designs are not introduced every other day, instead, it depends on West who has complete creative control. Also, he refused to compromise on the quality of the items so Yeezy shoes are always made of high-quality material to maintain a certain standard and they are sold at very high prices.

However, like other fast fashion brands, the sustainable and ethical practices behind the production of these items are quite doubtful. While Yeezy is almost animal cruelty-free, it is suspected of using real fur on some of the shoes. It also uses sweatshops which goes against all ethical codes of conduct. Yeezy came under fire in 2017 for using sweatshops where the workers were forced to work under terrible conditions with unlivable pay. The brand promised to improve its practices related to Yeezy but it faced such accusations again a few years later after which it claimed to spend a large sum of money to improve conditions at factories but these claims were never backed up or brought up again.

In an interview with Zane Lowe, Kanye West talked about wanting to be more sustainable. He wanted to use organic cotton that did not have to be dyed because dyes used in the fashion industry are quite toxic and have proven to be extremely dangerous for the environment. West also mentioned owning farms where he was attempting to grow materials such as cotton, hemp, and wheat so that he could be in control of each process in the production. He seemed very passionate about sustainability and felt a sense of responsibility towards the planet that has always sustained humans.

Yeezy shoes were also said to be made partially from algae in 2020 to make them more eco-friendly. Algae grows fast and absorbs CO2 from its surroundings which is a huge bonus. For West’s “Seed to Sole” collection, he not only used materials grown in his farms, but also other sustainable materials proven to be beneficial to the environment, and attempted to reduce the use of items that contributed to increasing the brand’s carbon footprint like toxic dyes.

Despite such efforts, no evidence of any Code of Conduct or Environmental Report details how much water and energy is consumed by the brand. There is a general lack of transparency surrounding the behind-the-scenes of Yeezy and that is one of the reasons why we are unsure of labeling Yeezy as fast fashion. It is fast fashion in terms of a disregard towards the environment but the quality and frequency of release of the items goes against the fast fashion model.

The History of the Yeezy Logo - Hatchwise

Kanye Talks About Making his Clothing Brand Yeezy Eco-Friendly - One Green Planet

Kanye West Is Launching Vegan Yeezy Shoes Made From Algae (livekindly.com)

The afterlife of Yeezy sneakers - The Washington Post

Adidas Hit with Fine Over "Working Conditions" in Calabasas Yeezy Studio - The Fashion Law