After
Kanye West opted to cut ties with Nike recently when the company decided not to
pay the rapper loyalties for his design work, it was expected that the company
would not release any further Kanye-designed items. To make matters even more
difficult for Nike, Kanye quickly signed a new deal with Adidas and it appeared
as though Nike would simply not want anything further to do with the rapper
after the bust up.
However,
Nike surprised fans by releasing one final pair of trainers - the Air Yeezy II
Red Octobers - and they've quickly been snapped up despite minimal marketing.
The company's work with Kanye began in 2009 and they decided that fans wanted
the final trainers to be released, so due to high demand they went through with
releasing the final red version of Kanye's design. Nike commented that people
were actively seeking the trainers which retail for $245: “Nike was
committed to releasing the Red colour way. And it was clear the consumer was
asking for it. Nike communicated directly to nearly 2.6 million Twitter
followers when we made it available for purchase… This is the final shoe in the
Yeezy collection.”
Kanye
previously explained why he cut ties with Nike, commenting that he was forced
to do so in order to provide for his daughter: "I looked at the adidas contract
and I looked at the Nike contract and I looked at my daughter’s eyes and I made
the decision I needed to be able to make to expand my ability to make product…I
appreciate Nike for allowing me the opportunity to express myself.”
