Stretch

Lululemon finds its zen in the WFH era — flexibility is its greatest strength

Friday, May 15, 2020 by Snacks
_Didn't even need to change out of work clothes_

Didn't even need to change out of work clothes

When life gives you Lululemons... make Lululemonade. Lululemon's 400+ stores have been closed since mid-March. The yoga, spin, and pilates studios where people show off matching Lulu outfits are equally shuttered. But the corona-conomy hasn't stopped the athleisure icon:

  • 33%: Online sales already made up 33% of Lulu's total sales before lockdowns started, making it well-position for a shift to full ecommerce.
  • +50%: How much Lulu's online sales jumped in April (aka, mid-corona crisis) compared to January of this year.
  • +200%: How much Lulu's online sales soared in April compared to April 2019.

Just as flexible as its $90 leggings... In a recent WSJ survey, 24% of people chose athletic/athleisure wear as a top-three category of what they would spend their stimulus checks on. The 24/7 stay-at-home life mainly consists of chilling, working, exercising, and sleep. Lululemon is cruising because it checks 3 of those 4 boxes:

  • One legging, many leg things: Lulu clothes are athletic enough for an at-home yoga sesh, stylish enough for an Erewhon run, and comfy enough for a Netflix binge.
  • The rise of "work-leisure": Lulu also leaned into styles that look like work clothes, but feel like sweats — this anti-khaki innovation helped sales of menswear jump almost 40% in the December quarter.
THE TAKEAWAY

Versatility is market strength... That might be why Lululemon stock is performing way better than that of its more singularly-focused athletic peers. Lulu stock is up 1% for the year — while that doesn't sound incredible, Nike is down 15%, Adidas is down 32%, and the intensely athletic house-protecting Under Armour is down almost 65%.

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