What We Want To See From Kanye West and Demna's Yeezy Gap Engineered By Balenciaga

Image via Complex Original

“Finally, affordable Balenciaga,” is probably how many people reacted to the news. 

Demna’s been designing utilitarian collections at Balenciaga price points for years with mixed reviews from consumers. Some people love the irony of a multi-layered coat that looks like the amalgamation of a dusty coat closet. Others can’t quite understand why someone would want to pay $595 for a black T-shirt with an illustration of The Incredible Hulk on it. Demna has clearly always been inspired by utilitarian fashion. Now, he has the chance to sell his creations at a price that’s affordable for the people he’s actually inspired by. We’ve seen Demna assist Ye with more affordable goods before like the merch for DMX’s memorial and the Donda listening sessions. But with this venture, it would be great to see more than graphic T-shirts. We’d like cut and sew items that live Gap’s racks but could just as easily make sense in a Balenciaga showroom.

Aside from the more accessible pricing, I hope that Yeezy Gap Engineered By Balenciaga is released a bit differently than the Round Jackets and hoodies from the Yeezy Gap line, which are dropped online and able to pre-order for a couple of hours. It would great to see this collection released in totality. Give customers a full range of options all at once, the way most brands traditionally release new products. Even better than that, it would be nice to actually walk into your nearest Gap store and see or touch the pieces before purchasing them. Given the hype and guaranteed success of a project with Ye and Demna at the helm, this obviously isn’t necessary. Everything is going to sell out regardless, but you lose something from the shopping experience when you just see a photo of it on your laptop can cannot actually go and touch it in person. Part of the initial excitement of seeing Ye join forces with a company like Gap was the possibility of making his designs more accessible than ever. Ye has made it clear that is his goal, but thus far we haven’t seen it come to fruition. If this collab had that level of access, it would be another monumental shift in the marketplace that he helped orchestrate. —Mike DeStefano

Ye and Demna get each other. They work well together. Balenciaga’s creative director told Vogue as part of the exclusive announcement of Yeezy Gap Engineered By Balenciaga, “There are very few people that I know, especially of Ye’s caliber, who really understand my work so well. He makes me come out of my comfort zone and be a better designer. There’s no ego when we collaborate, just a mutual drive to evolve and do something great and new.”

The two proved it throughout 2021. Not only did Ye become the unofficial poster boy of Balenciaga, but Demna also helped bring Ye’s second Donda listening session in Atlanta and final event in Chicago to life. Each was its own spectacle, told its own story, and climaxed with its own memorable visual. In Atlanta, Ye ascended to the heavens while in his home city he opted to burn a re-creation of his childhood home to the ground. Which brings us to Yeezy Gap Engineered By Balenciaga. It’s clear that the two creatives know how to put on a show. So why not bring that vision to a presentation for the new collection? It could be a giant moment in a stadium akin to the Donda sessions. It could be an unconventional approach to the runway. Remember, Demna walked The Simpsons down a catwalk last year. Maybe, it could be a date night in New York outfitted by Yeezy Gap x Balenciaga pieces and photographed tabloid style. Whatever it is, it will stick in our minds. When two minds like Demna and Ye come together, it’s fair to expect more than just clothing will be created. We hope the official unveiling of Yeezy Gap Engineered By Balenciaga is no different. —Mike DeStefano

I’ve appreciated Kanye West releasing one Gap x Yeezy item and colorway at a time. We are bombarded with product every day and this method eliminates the paradox of choice. But when releasing items as one-offs, it’s harder to understand or buy into a vision. Now I know for most of Kanye’s fans his name being attached to the product is all they need to push them to purchase it. But for the Yeezy Gap Engineered by Balenciaga project, I would love to see a full collection that feels complete and is merchandised well in stores. A full line that shows customers how to wear the product and helps them reconsider what a basic piece of clothing can be. Demna, much like West, is a storyteller, and for me that’s lost when dropping one product every four to six months. I’d love for this full collection to come with interesting marketing or a thoughtful rollout that entertains and makes us think, as Demna’s done in the past.—Aria Hughes

What’s the point of having someone as forward thinking as Demna associated with your brand if you don’t have him influence the entire consumer experience? Currently, Gap stores have a very utilitarian purpose: They are a place to buy and try on clothes. But outside of that, they don’t induce much delight or joy. Balenciaga stores are very sleek and modern. The perfect canvas for Demna’s designs, but I’m sure he has thoughts on how to make the mass market shopping experience more intriguing. And I hope that the collection will be sold in stores. I’d be satisfied with a pop-up shop within already existing Gap flagships, but I hope that they don’t just throw pieces from his collection on racks. Maybe Demna will figure out how to give the everyday consumer a more elevated experience. Maybe he’ll integrate some new technology into the process that alleviates common pain points. Who knows. But Gap’s stores could use some excitement and Demna is the perfect candidate to do it.—Aria Hughes

To be completely honest, one of the biggest surprises from the releases of Yeezy Gap apparel thus far has been the prices. Lord knows how Gap and Ye managed to release heavyweight, 100% cotton hoodies produced in Indonesia that weighed nearly two pounds for a retail price of just $90. Questions can be raised about what percentage of “recycled nylon” was actually used to produce those $200 Yeezy Gap Round Jackets or if the polyester filling was also recycled. Like other fast fashion labels, Gap isn’t exactly known to be the most sustainable brand. However, it has made some inroads over the years such as using eco-friendly materials and setting science-based targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Somewhat transparent information about their sustainability efforts is also available online. 

Younger consumers, the ones likely most interested in apparel from Yeezy Gap, are also more invested in learning more about what went into producing their clothing and the ethics of it. It’s clear that sustainability is something that both Demna and Ye care about too. Ye has spoken about developing “sew to seed” fabrics for Yeezy. Demna has sent out messages about climate change through some of his runway shows and recently emphasized in an interview with Business of Fashion that he wants to put a focus on sustainability at Balenciaga from couture to the materials used to make the label’s popular sneakers. 

If Ye can make a collaboration with the Gap and Balenciaga happen, he could also potentially make the brand more transparent about sustainability. It would be intriguing to see a collection that not only looks great, but also strives to go beyond just being produced out of recycled materials. Consumers should know what Gap factories produce Yeezy Gap, how much those workers are being paid, what the factory conditions are like, how the cotton is sourced, and more. What are these Yeezy Gap products really made from and what is the impact on the environment? Sadly, even with all this talk about sustainability, this seems like an impossible endeavor for most brands to achieve. But what we’ve learned from Ye over all these years is that his voice is so powerful that he can make major changes happen overtime. It would be nice to see a  push for changes that could benefit the garment industry at large via Yeezy Gap Engineered By Balenciaga.—Lei Takanashi