Adidas aims for 'street cred' with hip-hop alliance

The new collection is based on a partnership between Adidas Originals and hip-hop artist Missy Elliott, and will be labeled 'Respect me'. According to Cindy Ng, regional head of brand communication for Adidas, Asia-Pacific, the 'Respect me' product offering will be marketed with a "message of positivity and empowerment", designed to appeal to the star's core fan base and the larger urban women's market. The collection will be available globally in November. "We have an ongoing partnership with Missy, whereby she has been wearing Adidas in lot of her music videos and at award shows. This is the first formal endorsement and is the first time we have partnered with a performance artist. In the past, we have worked with sports celebrities but now it's with the entertainment industry," said Ng. Ng added that the 'Respect me' collection would look back at Adidas' 'old school' street credibility, giving it a modern twist. The collection will have three components, Bass, Rhythm and Remix, targeting different looks and distribution channels. Adidas has Original stores in Singapore, Korea and Japan.