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Yeezy Season 1: How to Shop Kanye West x Adidas [Updated]

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In this era of collaboration, it's not rare to hear a celebrity attach themselves to a major brand — or vice versa. Kanye West's passion for his project with Adidas, however, is something special. The notoriously particular rapper has clearly poured himself into the clothes and shoes he designed with the athletic brand, drawing the attention of an audience that spans top 40-listening teenagers to high fashion editors.

While a handful of sneaker styles from Yeezy Season 1 — the official title of the collab — have been released to the public, the bulk of what the artist/designer/presidential candidate (oh, Kanye) showed during last season's Fashion Week won't be released until October 29th. Below, we break down everything to know about shopping Yeezy Season 1, including pricing and retailers.

What is Yeezy Season 1?

Yeezy Season 1 is a collaborative effort between Kanye West and Adidas. It is the rapper's first collection for the German athletic brand, and it includes sneakers and apparel for both men and women. The line debuted on February 12th as part of New York Fashion Week's fall/winter 2015 collection season with a fashion show that included an A-list front row, a new Kanye track, and heavy influence from Raf Simons, Rick Owens, and Helmut Lang. During September's fashion week, Kanye showed Yeezy Season 2, which won't be produced by Adidas, save for the sneaker styles.

Looks from the Yeezy Season 1 fashion show. Photo: Getty Images/Theo Wargo

Kanye's previous work as a fashion designer includes sneaker gigs with BAPE, Nike, and Louis Vuitton; a series of menswear capsules with the French brand A.P.C.; and a single, not-so-well-liked womenswear collection, which was shown under his own name at Paris fashion week for the spring 2012 season.

The Sneakers

Sneakers are the only pieces from Yeezy Season 1 to hit shoppers prior to the collection's October 29 release date. The Yeezy Boost 750, a high-top in gray suede, came out on Valentine's Day — just two days after the fashion show. It retailed for $350 and sold out immediately. A low-top style, the Yeezy Boost 350, was next, dropping on June 27th in a black-and-white speckle knit (pictured below). Priced at $200, it also sold out immediately. On August 22nd, an all-black version of the 350 was released to — surprise — equal customer fervor.

According to an Instagram post from Adidas Originals, the October 29 release will include the Yeezy 950 (aka the duck boot, $585). The same IG post says the 350 will be released on November 14th, believed (but unconfirmed) to be in white and tan, as seen on Kanye himself at James Haden's birthday party August 26th and the VMAs August 30th, respectively.

The Clothes

Apparel, including knits, coats, and sweatpants, will finally hit stores October 29. Following February's fashion show, little was seen of the clothing portion of the collection until recently. GQ's September issue offered four shots of musician The Weeknd styled by Kanye in Yeezy Season 1. The images show off outerwear and sweatshirts, primarily, with pricing details wedged in the credits (more on that below).

The Weeknd in GQ September 2015

An accompanying video with GQ creative director Jim Moore and style editor Will Welch is arguably more informative than the glossy mag pages, with the editors in front of a rolling rack featuring every piece from the collection. As they pull out highlight pieces, Moore explains what shooting Kanye for GQ in the past has been like: "We'd put a classic sweatshirt on him, and the first thing he'd do was rip out the neck, and stretch out the bottom and pull it down to his knees," he says in the video. "Nothing can be long enough, nothing can be stretched out enough. It's slouchy but controlled, and that's what he's done here. He's really giving you one of the secrets to his great taste." The video offers a look at details like the all-caps YEEZY tag, the "ultra-customizable" cuff on a pair of sweatpants, and purposeful pilling on a military-inspired sweater.

yeezy-tag_2015_09
yeezy-duck-boots_2015_09

Stills from GQ's behind the scenes video

The first follow-up look at womenswear from the collection appears, ironically, in the debut issue of CR Men's Book. Twenty-year-old Tink (perhaps you're familiar with her song "Ratchet Commandments") models sweatpants and the same sateen flight jacket seen on The Weeknd, plus a crop top; her nude bodysuit is credited as a "show piece." Vic Mensa and Holt — Chicago natives like Tink and Mr. West — are photographed for the piece as well, which is titled Gen: Yeezy and cast by Kanye. The only non-Chi affiliate is Fetty Wap, who saw record-breaking success this summer with four simultaneous top 10 singles (there's no way you didn't hear "Trap Queen" this summer).

tink-cr-fashion-book-yeezy_2015_09

Tink, Vic Mensa. Photos: CR Men's Book

Pricing

The most substantial look at apparel pricing so far came from that GQ editorial, with the following call outs:
  • Thermal shirt, $405
  • Crewneck, $495
  • Hoodie $545
  • Sweatpants, $585
  • Duck boots, $585
  • Sweater, $1,560
  • Vest, $1,170
  • Camo jacket, $2,210
  • Flight jacket, $3,250

In March, less than a month after the Yeezy Season 1 show, High Snobiety claims to have gotten ahold of pricing info, though it's unvetted by Adidas at this point. Here's what they reported in Euros at the time, and the current exchange rate to dollars:

  • Hoodies and sweatshirts, €390 ($435)
  • Duck boot, €450 ($502)
  • Canvas backpack, €450 ($502)
  • White leather backpack, €650 ($726)
  • Leather bag, €800 ($893)
  • Knitwear, €800 — €1500 ($893 — $1,675)
  • Outerwear, €1600 — €3500 ($1,786 — $3,908)

Regarding the high prices, the site notes:

"Underlining these steep prices, however, is absolutely top-notch quality that will give luxury houses a run for their money. Each piece is made in Italy at some of the world’s best factories, using only the finest materials. The leather is what you’d expect from a storied French house, while the technical fabrics featured in the collection could easily have been developed and used by urban fashion’s leading forces."

Where to Buy

Retailers include Adidas.com and "select Adidas Originals retail partners." There is no complete list of retailers available, but Racked has learned of the following confirmed stockists:

Stores with an asterisk have confirmed they will be stocking apparel in addition to footwear. The 950 boots will likely go as quickly as their 350 predecessors have (that's "instantly"), but will $900 sweaters sell out as quickly? That remains to be seen and should be interesting to watch.