After being sued by Kanye West over allegations that it was selling a pair of sandals that were “virtually indisguisable” from his Yeezy Foam Runners, Walmart has removed the shoe from its website.
According to TMZ, Walmart removed all the pairs of Beige Daeful Mens Womens Kids Summer Beach Shoes Foam Runner Anti Slipper Sandals from their site as requested in West’s lawsuit. However, the media outlet says there are still “hundreds” of copies of the alleged knockoffs available online through e-commerce sites like Etsy, where a pair is being sold from $30 to $60. The publication stated that one online store is even labeling the footwear as “Yeezy Inspired,” but are strikingly similar to West’s design. As of late, there’s no word on if the “Jesus Walks” emcee will be in contact with the other retailers to have them take their merchandise down.
As previously reported, on Thursday, June 24, the fashion designer filed a suit in the California court in Los Angeles, California, claiming that the selling of the knockoff shoes — being sold between $21.99 and $22.99 — cost his brand hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.
At the time, the retail giant denied ownership, stating that the shoes weren’t technically being sold by them but by third-party sellers. In a statement, a spokesperson for Walmart said, “The product referenced in the complaint is not sold by Walmart, but rather by third-party Marketplace sellers. We take allegations like this seriously and are reviewing the claim. We will respond in court as appropriate after we have been served with the complaint.”
West’s sneaker was released in June 2020 with a retail price tag of $75 and sold out everywhere available, instantly— as does almost all of his merchandise. On popular shoe reselling apps such as Flight Club, StockX and GOAT, the Foam Runner can easily sell from anywhere between $800 to even $1,000.
In April 2021, West found himself on the opposition side of accusations after Walmart claimed that the rapper’s “rays from the sun” logo design that he uses for his brand Yeezy looks similar to Walmart’s 13-year-old sun logo.
