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This is good news for all the Yeezy Gap brand enthusiasts and Kanye West fans, as, from July 21, 2022, Kanye's Yeezy Gap line will be available for purchase in physical stores for the first time.
According to the label, the much-celebrated clothing line will be available at a special pop-up inside the Gap's New York City flagship store at Times Square.
Address: YZY Gap Times Square, 1514 Broadway, New York, NY 10036.
Timings: 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. EST
The selection of clothes will include many of the inaugural pieces and pieces from the second drop of the Yeezy Gap Engineered by Balenciaga collection, which debuted earlier this year in February.
Diving into the upcoming Kanye West x Gap x Balenciaga collaboration
The special pop-up store was announced through a video posted on Instagram. The video was posted on the label's first-ever official Instagram account, @yeezy. According to the official press release, the space/ store,
“Has been reengineered and distilled to its most essential form in Yeezy Gap engineered by Balenciaga’s vision of utilitarian design."
Judging from the viral announcement video of the in-store launch, we can expect a mountainous heap of clothing to be available in the physical store collection, with the majority clad in monochromatic black tones.
Most clothes will follow Kanye West's minimalistic approach and feature the signature dove motif pieces, which have been seen often since the inauguration of Yeezy Gap, engineered by Balenciaga.
The press release further talks about how physical stores will help the brand,
“The entry into Gap stores fulfills the vision to deliver Yeezy Gap design on a larger scale.”
This creative vision of expansion has been shared by both Kanye West and Balenciaga's creative director, Demna Gvasalia, who want to extend the reach of luxury in design and utilitarian fashion.
Kanye West and Gap made the pop-up announcement on Wednesday, July 20, 2022, with a video posted on the newly made Yeezy's first official Instagram account.
The announcement ad was directed by well-known photographer Thyago Sainte, who has worked with Kanye West and Balenciaga.
The ad was creatively directed by Betsy Johnson, who showcased a clip of a wordless transaction between two hooded masked figures, which seems creepy yet dryly funny. The retail transaction occurs in a dark room, standing in front of a mountain of clothes.
For the upcoming physical store collection, fans can expect to walk into the store with a selection of eight Yeezy Gap Engineered by Balenciaga styles, which were recently released on May 27, 2022. The styles are distilled to an essential form and showcase the project's vision of utilitarian designs.
The Gap Times Square's entire second floor will be reimagined with the Yeezy Gap Engineered by Balenciaga products, along with many big visuals and campaign images on the walls to showcase the varied looks.
Items will retail at similar prices as online, ranging from $40 to $500, with sizes ranging from XS to XXL.
Last week, on July 15, 2022, Kanye West posted a Google image screenshot of Gap's chairman, Bob Martin, on his Instagram handle. Alongside the image, he wrote a heartfelt message saying,
“I came to Gap to put good product directly in stores. We’ve had 2 of the biggest sales day [sic] in Gap history since I’ve been there.... I came to Gap to bring good quality products to the people at all times.”
The Times Square pop-up will open at 10:00 a.m. EST in Manhattan, New York City. In addition to the retail location, the inaugural and second drop will still be available on the official e-commerce site of Yeezy Gap and Balenciaga's retail partner stores, including, Mytheresa, Farfetch, and Luisa Via Roma.
The retail store collection will be available for sale on Thursday, July 21, 2022, at various select stores in the US soon. The dates have not been confirmed yet.
