N.E.R.D. to Headline Adidas 747 Warehouse Los Angeles Event
Adidas, perhaps taking a cue from its own successes at ComplexCon, will strike out with a two-day event of its own called “747 Warehouse St.” focused on basketball and headlined by N.E.R.D.
The sportswear firm on Tuesday confirmed the group’s presence at the event, in addition to several exclusive colorway drops of the UltraBoost Mid Parley, Speedfactory AM4, Crazy BYW and other styles.
The event, taking place Feb. 16 and 17, is being billed as a nod to “basketball culture” with the merging of product releases, customization offerings, panels, concerts and athlete appearances. The name is taken from the address of the event, the former headquarters of American Apparel in downtown Los Angeles. The company appears to be making full use of the empty factory with a tour component of the event it’s calling The Warehouse, focused on taking attendees through a closer look at performance and the production process.
The company’s not charging for tickets, although attendees will have to pay a $15 processing fee.
Adidas has remained largely mum on the event since the initial announcement of it late last year. It appears to be taking a page from the buzz around similar format events, such as Agenda Festival and ComplexCon. The events, open to the public, removed boundary lines between industries such as fashion, retail, music and sneaker culture, placing everything under a single roof for its attendees. Marc Eckō, ComplexCon creator, told WWD in November at the time of the event that it was “about collaboration, young creative energy and brands getting out of their comfort zones.”
He also predicted the format would likely be replicated in other industries as more brands look to remain relevant with consumers.
“I think people are going to start going more consumer-facing in an effort to sustain, frankly,” Eckō said.
Since the launch of ComplexCon in 2016, the industry’s seen the action sports and streetwear trade show Agenda launch its own consumer-facing event called Agenda Festival. Next month Agenda, Capsule and Liberty Fairs will team on a new conference-style format called Assembly, to be held in Las Vegas. The more business-minded offering will include panels, workshops and talks from Ronnie Fieg of Kith and Vans’ Doug Palladini that’s free to the trade show attendees but also open to the public for admission starting at $150.
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