Kanye West (Ye), Gap and Balenciaga are joining forces: in June, retailer Gap will stock garments by the luxury house Balenciaga, designed for Ye.
Ten-year collaboration
Once America’s largest clothing retailer, Gap has been struggling for years and is making frantic attempts to rejuvenate its image. One of those attempts is a collaboration with Yeezy, the clothing brand of rapper Kanye West (now called Ye). Last year, the two entered into a ten-year partnership, which got immediately launched successfully with a collection of hoodies. The 90-dollar hoodies were signed by Ye and quickly became a collector’s item on resale sites, reports Business of Fashion.
Since Kanye West and Kim Kardashian, his ex-wife, have also been important advertisers for the luxury goods brand Balenciaga for years, a trinity is now emerging. Starting in June, Yeezy x Gap will also sell a range of garments designed by Balenciaga and its creative director Demna Gvasalia. For Gap, it means an unprecedented step towards luxury, while Balenciaga is moving in the direction of mass retail, which is exceptional.
“Coopetition”
Collaborations between seemingly contradictory players or even competitors are popping up more and more within the retail landscape. After all, being big today is no guarantee of survival. Those who survive are those who can best adapt to change. But no one can do that single-handedly anymore. Coopetition – a contraction of competition and cooperation – therefore changes the rules and offers opportunistic perspectives to all involved.
Want to know more about coopetition and how cooperation is the future of retail? Soon, you can read all about it in the second edition of the book The Future of Shopping, which will be published in March.
