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Following the split with Ye, adidas finds itself in the middle of another controversy, this time by way of another Ye-affiliate, Balenciaga. The French fashion house has been under fire following an ad scandal that implied support of child abuse and pornography. Despite Balenciaga Creative Director Demna Gvasalia’s public apology, adidas has decided to pause its partnership with Balenciaga.
Adidas began cancelling Balenciaga orders last week and sent out customer service emails saying, “We have taken the time to re-evaluate our partnership with Balenciaga and we have decided to pause all product launches until further notice. Unfortunately, therefore, we will be unable to fulfill your pre-order of the Balenciaga/adidas Stan Smith.”
Balenciaga also notified customers of the cancellations stating that the item orders “will be delayed in shipment” and to “ignore the previous email notification with … tracking number inside.”
The Balenciaga x adidas Collection was one of 2022’s most sought after collabs, with the Gucci x adidas Collection also being a top contender.
Before this, pre-ordered pairs of the adidas x Balenciaga Triple S had already been shipped out, so it seems that the sudden halt is in response to the ad scandal, although adidas makes no formal mention of it.
For updates on the Balenciaga x adidas partnership, check back with our sneaker news page and follow @NiceKicks on Instagram.
