YZY Gap Engineered by Balenciaga Releases Part Two
It’s not over until it’s over.
Despite the fact that Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, has ended his deal with Gap, products that have been designed and manufactured are still available to customers. YZY Gap Engineered by Balenciaga Part Two, a much ballyhooed collaboration among Ye, Demna and Gap, rolled out globally online on Thursday morning at 9 a.m.
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The new offering includes outerwear and knitwear, alongside redefined essentials. There are 22 styles in total, that depending on the item, range in size from XS to XXL, or small to large.
Beginning Sept. 23 and Sept. 26, the Gap Tokyo and Gap Shanghai flagships, respectively, will be reimagined in the YZY vision of utilitarian design, marking the first time YZY Gap product will be available at stores outside of the U.S.
In addition to these stores, YZY Gap Engineered by Balenciaga became available Thursday at 9 a.m. at Yeezygap.com, balenciaga.com, Balenciaga’s online partners, Farfetch.com, Mytheresa.com and Luisaviaroma.com
Further, Part Two is brought to life with new visuals by Raphael Bliss, with visual direction and styling by Betsy Johnson, a creative director who has worked with Demna and Ye. The campaign was photographed in Tokyo.
Future releases that have been created and designed are expected go into stores during the fall and into 2023.
Last January, it was revealed that Balenciaga was collaborating with Yeezy Gap. The first Yeezy Gap Engineered by Balenciaga merchandise became available last February, with additional items added in May. The collection went into Gap retail stores, starting with Gap’s Times Square flagship in July, and was followed by select U.S. stores.
Among the new styles are Yeezy Gap Engineered by Balenciaga coated cotton pullover anorak for $260, coated cotton overalls for $300, T-cut parka for $340 and T-cut puffer for $400.
As reported last week, Ye walked away from his increasingly troubled relationship with Gap, alleging that Gap failed to live up to its agreement to distribute Yeezy product. In an internal memo to employees Sept. 15, Gap brand chief executive officer Mark Breitbard said the company would “wind down the partnership.”
Ye first signed a deal with Gap in June 2020, saying they would create modern, elevated basics at accessible price points.
“While we share a vision of bringing high-quality, trend-forward utilitarian design to all people through unique omni experiences with Yeezy Gap, how we work together to deliver this vision is not aligned,” Breitbard said.
Earlier that day, Ye’s attorney, Nicholas Gravante Jr. of Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft, told WWD: “Gap left Ye no choice but to terminate their collaboration agreement because of Gap’s substantial noncompliance.
“Ye had diligently tried to work through these issues with Gap both directly and through counsel,” Gravante said. “He has gotten nowhere. Gap left him no choice to but to terminate their agreement. Gap’s substantial noncompliance with its contractual obligations has been costly. Ye will now promptly move forward to make up for lost time by opening Yeezy retail stores.”
Gravante and two other attorneys sent a letter to Gap Sept. 15, officially pulling the plug on the agreement and referring to a back and forth after Ye informed Gap of what he saw as a breach of contract on Aug. 16. Specifically, Ye argued that Gap failed to sell Yeezy products in Gap’s stores or open dedicated stores to the line.
YZY Gap Engineered by Balenciaga was part of the overall collection, but a separate agreement.
Last May, Sonia Syngal, the former CEO of Gap Inc., said, “The Yeezy Gap Engineered by Balenciaga launch drove urgency with customers and generated brand buzz in the first quarter with 6.6 billion media impressions. Additionally, you can expect the brand to expand across wholesale and marketplaces later this year.”
