Gap Stock Price Falls Following Kanye West’s Rally Speech In South Carolina

Ye’s threat to ditch the brand had Wall Street nervous.

(AllHipHop News) Less than a month ago, investors were jumping at the chance to buy Gap, Inc stock. The company had just announced a 10-year partnership with Kanye West, and its value on the New York Stock Exchange instantly jumped 30% following the news.

Yesterday, investors seemed to be more hesitant about putting money behind the ailing retailer. Gap’s stock fell around 6% on Monday. Stock market watchers believe West’s erratic speech on Sunday played a part in the decline.

“Risk or no risk of losing whatever deal possible, I am not on the board at Adidas. I am not on the board at Gap. And that has to change today or I walk away,” West told the crowd a his “presidential campaign event” in South Carolina. 

The musician/entrepreneur also has a deal with the German sportswear brand Adidas for his Yeezy sneaker line. Adidas’s stock opened at $137.20 on Monday but only dropped to $136.99.

Gap is set to be the official home for the Yeezy clothing collection beginning in 2021. Yeezy was hopefully going to be a much-needed boost for Gap’s financial and public relations situation. 

Art Peck stepped down as Gap’s CEO in 2019, and the company’s net sales fell by 50% in the first quarter of 2020. Reportedly, Gap was forced to close around 90% of its global stores because of the COVID-19 pandemic and its year-to-date cash flow was at a negative $1.1 billion.